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Welcome
to the
Jungle
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HOW NETWORKS PLAN
TO SURVIVE THE NEW
TV LANDSCAPE
BEHIND
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CANADIAN
SPIRIT
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2015-03-18 6:08 PM
JULY/AUGUST 2015 • VOLUME 26, ISSUE 6
Tornado Hunters, on specialty channel CMT, is
just one of the high-octane new shows this fall.
14
18
36
Diageo’s Canuck strategy
Surviving Fall TV
Online video grows up
The purveyor of popular alcohol brands is
tailoring its launches with Canadian tastes
in mind
It’s a skirmish out there in television land.
Which networks will pass muster, and which
will be left in the dust?
YouTube stars are no longer a niche
phenomenon, as broadcasters and brands
tap the potential of millions of views
4 Editorial A different fame game • 8 Upfront TV viewing broken down, plus McDonald’s goes local and Cheerios spotlights health
• 12 Periscope pops up a whole new world of broadcasters • 19 The primetime battleground heats up as the big nets bet
on a slew of new shows • 30 The specialty channel biz just became a more challenging game – who will win? • 42 The Fall TV
schedule lets you know what to watch and when to set your PVR • 46 The AToMiC Awards celebrated forward-thinking work and the
people behind it • 48 Forum PHD’s Rob Young sums up the current TV landscape and the trouble it’s in
• 50 Back page We re-imagine the Fall TV shows to be a bit more brand-friendly
ON THE COVER: The Fall TV issue has always had a bit of a survival theme to it. Years ago, it was a question
O
Welcome
to the
Jungle
HOW NETWORKS PLAN
TO SURVIVE THE NEW
TV LANDSCAPE
PRINTED IN CANADA
USPS AFSM 100 Approved
Polywrap
BEHIND
DIAGEO’S
CANADIAN
SPIRIT
of which shows would survive against each other in their respective time slots. Nowadays, things have gotten
decidedly more complicated. Not only is there time slot competition, but there’s more competition between
genres (thanks to PVRs), new online competition (thanks to YouTube), as well as streaming services and
channel competition (thanks to upcoming channel unbundling and pick and pay). It truly is a jungle out there.
CANADA POST AGREEMENT
NUMBER 40050265
JULY/AUG 2015 t $6.95
A PUBLICATION OF BRUNICO
COMMUNICATIONS LTD.
July/August 2015
Contents.JulyAug_15.indd 3
3
2015-06-11 7:22 PM
The new world (media) order
july/august 2015 volume 26, issue 6
strategyonline.ca
vp, publisher | mary maddever | mmaddever@brunico.com
I
didn’t realize what it meant to be internet famous until I got an
Instagram account. No, I’m not talking about myself, I’m talking about
those people who would constantly make the “popular” page. I’d look
at their followers – 500,000, 1.4 million…Who are these people? How come I had
never heard of any of them? I’m not that old, but maybe I am that old? Being on
the cusp of Gen X and millennial, I loat between the two worlds – I have Twitter,
Instagram and Facebook, but not Snapchat or Vine. I watch the latest shows on
Netlix, but I don’t spend a lot of time on YouTube. I can intuitively understand a
new app, but I don’t bother with a lot of them.
I don’t want to generalize and assume that because someone is older than me
they must be less tech- and trend-savvy (I know that’s not the case), but if I’m
blissfully unaware of the mega-popularity of internet
stars, I can imagine that many senior marketers are
too. Even Justin Stockman, VP specialty channels at
Bell Media, said the staff at Much – who are relatively
young – felt a knowledge gap when it came to internet
star power.
But the tides are turning. Thanks to events like
YouTube FanFest (held at Toronto’s Yonge-Dundas
Square in May) and the mainstream media picking up
on their fame, these new stars are suddenly everywhere.
Broadcasters are seeing their potential too, with the
likes of Much and Corus launching their own multichannel networks (MCNs) because the big media cos are
realizing it’s a game they should be playing (see p. 36).
At this point, no one is putting all their eggs into the
linear TV basket. Streaming services, MCNs, connecting
across platforms – broadcasters are spreading out their
content. But are they spreading themselves too thin?
I was chatting with Katie Bailey, editor of our sister pub Playback, which
covers Canadian ilm and television, upon her return from the Banff World Media
Festival. She said a concern she heard raised was whether broadcasters stepping
away from their core ad product was diluting their offering. Is there such a thing
as too much choice? Further, consumers don’t even know which platform to
watch a show on anymore, which can lead to frustration.
But too much choice might just be a necessary evil in today’s media
landscape. Broadcasters have to go where the eyeballs are going. (If Netlix
didn’t evolve, it would still be mailing out DVDs – in other words, bankrupt.)
And the eyeballs are going online to watch some kid you’ve never heard of
narrate a videogame you’ve never played in front of 2.5 million of his closest pals.
Welcome to the jungle, indeed.
Emily Wexler, editor
editor | emily wexler | ewexler@brunico.com
art director | tim davin | tdavin@brunico.com
special projects editor | jennifer horn | jhorn@brunico.com
copy chief & writer | tanya kostiw | tkostiw@brunico.com
news editor | harmeet singh | hsingh@brunico.com
reporter | josh kolm | jkolm@brunico.com
contributors | megan haynes | val maloney | jonathan paul | rob young
associate publisher | lisa faktor | lfaktor@brunico.com
advertising sales supervisor | neil ewen | newen@brunico.com
marketing co-ordinator | alex khotsiphom | akhotsiphom@brunico.com
CORPORATE
president & ceo | russell goldstein | rgoldstein@brunico.com
vp & editorial director | mary maddever | mmaddever@brunico.com
vp & publisher, realscreen | claire macdonald | cmacdonald@brunico.com
vp & publisher, kidscreen | jocelyn christie | jchristie@brunico.com
vp administration & finance | linda lovegrove | llovegrove@brunico.com
chief information officer | omri tintpulver | otintpulver@brunico.com
production & distribution manager | robert lines | rlines@brunico.com
customer support supervisor | christine mcnalley | cmcnalley@brunico.com
how to reach us
Strategy, 366 Adelaide Street West, Suite 100, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5V 1R9
Tel: (416) 408-2300 or 1-888-BRUNICO (1-888-278-6426) Fax: (416) 408-0870
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4
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2015-06-11 3:59 PM
Strap in
july/august 2015 volume 26, issue 6
UPCOMING EVENTS
T
his is the year change will really shake up Canada’s TVscape. It came to a
head with an unexpected push from the CRTC ending specialty channel
genre protection, a regulated skinny basic package and a move away
from proscribed Cancon levels (and puzzling threats to simsub). Add a radical
round of leadership change at the networks, and it's a whole new ballgame.
One is being played in a global league, up against the likes of Netlix and
YouTube. Which in context, makes the national broadcast rivalry a local playing
ield – with much better odds.
And that’s the conundrum facing brands creating their own content
programs; more and more people are watching content on tiny screens, but
global viral odds are not in your favour. And even when you hit it out of the park,
if you have a budget for marketing in Canada,
you’d like results here please.
For both networks and brands, the opportunity
lies in trying new ways to build audiences across
platforms and that’s why the new mash-ups
of Canadian networks with the online celeb
community is overdue. Corus collaborating with
Kin and Much starting its own MCN working with
YouTube creators are great combos of a national
audience platform, plus a demo dive into off-thegrid consumers.
While some Canadian brands have already been
working directly with the creator community, the
next step is to parlay that into long-horizon content
programs, mastering story arcs and transmedia worlds that keep fans loyal while
drawing in new audiences – using the showrunner skill set. Just like Degrassi has
done for decades across many platforms.
Factor in the addressability and data potential of TV as it moves deeper into
more actively subscribed and digital territory, and we see two complementary
streams emerging. Not broadcast versus digital, but direct and diffuse. And
since TV advertising is still most eficient for achieving KPIs, the opportunity to
leverage it to also augment brand content should be more attractive than ever.
Hitting it out of the park on a Super Bowl spot (an American one, depending
on how the simsub skirmish goes), still holds value for any brand that wants a
big megaphone (according to a recent MarketShare study, over the last ive years
TV was the only medium to maintain its effectiveness). And on the lip side, the
audience de-fragmenting pick-and-pay could cause may be a good thing; the
more directly brands reach the right audience, the better the odds of resonating.
Where that content exists – mobile, TV, direct VR feed to your brain – will
matter less than what it ladders up to, its IP longevity and audience afinity. So
dig in for the long haul. I suggest you start reading Playback, and delve into our
BCONxChange Canadian content database. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.
EARLY BIRD ENTRY DEADLINE: JULY 17, 2015
FINAL DEADLINE: AUGUST 5, 2015
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2015-06-12 2:40 PM
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2015-06-11 4:00 PM
SPOTLIGHTING
FOOD DESERTS
CHEERIOS’ ANTI-DIET MISSION
By Tanya Kostiw
W
ant to drop ive pounds before the weekend? Try this one trick
to eliminate belly fat.
These kinds of messages have become a staple in today’s
mediascape, but imagine how a young girl might feel reading them.
“Threats to our children’s well-being are hidden in plain sight,” says
Jason Doolan, marketing director, General Mills Canada.
That’s the insight behind a new campaign from Multi-Grain Cheerios,
which looks to tackle what the General Mills brand has coined
“dietainment,” deined as unhealthy messaging around dieting veiled as
harmless entertainment (think health, lifestyle and celebrity content that
fosters unhealthy eating habits).
“We’ve kind of convinced ourselves that it’s benign and clearly it is
not,” says Doolan. “The research we have tells us that girls are dieting
younger than ever before. It’s a pretty scary phenomenon, and we think
it’s something that Multi-Grain Cheerios can have something to say about,
shine a light on the issue and help create some change.”
The campaign asks consumers to sign a petition online to prevent
young girls from being exposed to these messages, calling upon the media
industry to take action. Working with Cossette on creative and media, TV
spots kicked off June 15 and feature young girls reading “dietainment”
messaging, such as “Celebrity secrets to a hot body” and “Are you ready
for bikini season?” Meanwhile, the hub WorldWithoutDieting.ca houses
long-form videos featuring interviews with young girls and their mothers,
as well as direct messages from the girls to publishers of “dietainment”
content. “The Multi-Grain Cheerios Campaign Against Dietainment” will
also be supported with a digital buy and a blogger/social media inluencer
campaign with the Yummy Mummy Club.
It’s the second generation of the brand’s “World Without Dieting”
campaign, which kicked off in 2013, and spurred a double-digit sales
lift (with an 18% peak last March), encouraging consumers to eschew
cyclical dieting in favour of a healthy lifestyle and sign a petition declaring
they won’t say “diet.” The brand sought to show parents they could be
unknowingly passing negative behaviour around dieting to their children.
8
How much would you pay for fresh tomatoes? In
northern Canada, it can cost as much as $17.99
per kilo.
Cost is among the challenges consumers can
have when trying to access healthy food, which is
at the heart of a new program from Hellmann’s,
and the latest evolution of its “Real Food
Movement” (which launched in 2007).
Food deserts – defined by the brand as an area
where accessing affordable, fresh and nutritious
food is difficult – have become an increasingly
prevalent topic, says Gina Kiroff, marketing
manager, dressings and savoury, Unilever.
According to its research, one in five Canadians
live in a food desert, while the term is only
known to half the population. The brand aims
to stir conversation around the issue and raise
awareness through a number of channels. Since
education was deemed to be a significant part of
the solution, Hellmann’s decided to encourage
consumers to share a photo of a tomato and its
cost per kilogram, with the hashtag #MyTomato.
“This will illustrate the differences between
what a tomato would cost within an urban centre
versus a food desert,” Kiroff says. “The differences
can be astronomical.”
However, Hellmann’s set its sights on making
a tangible impact as well, so it partnered with
the Northern Farm Training Institute and donated
$75,000 to create a training greenhouse to
generate food for those in need (food inaccessibility
affects northern communities the most), which will
become part of the school’s curriculum.
Other campaign elements include a
15-second TV spot driving consumers to
RealFoodMovement.ca to sign the petition,
along with an online video created by Ogilvy and
produced by AOL. The campaign also features
a digital buy and a partnership with celebrity
chef Lynn Crawford. Hellmann’s worked with
Mindshare on media and Harbinger on influencer
and media relations. TK
Upfront.JulyAug15.indd 8
2015-06-11 7:15 PM
CREEPY SHOW PROMOS
The best part of any horror movie is usually the anticipation it
builds before inally delivering the blow. The same could be said
for promoting a new TV series.
A recent U.S. study from programmatic platform Unruly found
that 80% of millennials will give a show a shot if someone they
know shares a promo with them.
Here, we look at three recent promotions that upped the freaky
factor and got creepy with their creative to build buzz.
By Harmeet Singh
GOING UN-HUMAN
The U.K.’s Channel 4 and AMC
got people talking (and Googling)
about sci-fi series Humans after it
launched a creepy 30-second faux
commercial. The spot showcased
“Sally,” a remarkably lifelike android
housekeeper who could easily be part
of the family (“Persona Synthetics”
like Sally are central to the plot of the
drama about the blurred line between
humans and machines).
Somehow real-feeling, but
definitely off-putting, the ad featured
only a small #Humans hashtag at the
end to give any indication of what it
was actually for. The hoax continued
online, on the Persona Synthetics’
Twitter account (which you can follow
for upcoming fake store openings)
and website, where you can get
details on the cyborgs up for sale.
SHOMI SOME ZOMBIES
When Shomi got the exclusive rights
to iZombie in Canada earlier this
year, it needed to promote both the
millennial-friendly show – about a
medical-resident-turned-zombie
who helps solve murders – and the
fact that the streaming service is the
go-to place to watch.
Working with BBDO, the service
launched a series of ads all around
“The Zombie’s Guide to Surviving
Among the Living” with tips and tricks
about how to act human (everything
from women’s bathroom etiquette to
keeping up with human fashion).
Ahead of the show’s Canadian
premiere, Shomi hit the streets of
Toronto in March with an iZombiebranded food truck serving up
zombie-inspired recipes to the media
and consumers at Toronto ComiCon.
TV BY THE NUMBERS
There have been whispers that TV is a dead medium walking. While the jury’s
still out on its fate, some research is pointing to television remaining a staple
source of content in Canadian households. In fact, 3% more TV viewing took
place in the fall of 2014 compared to the previous year (according to Numeris
TV Meter). Want more stats? Here’s a roundup of TV-related numbers from the
By Jennifer Horn
past year.
WHERE ARE THE
EYEBALLS?
Each week, Canadian adults
age 18 to 34 spend:
24.8
hours on the internet
19.8
hours in front of the TV
17.7
hours watching live non-recorded TV
2.1
hours watching pre-recorded TV
1.3
hours viewing Netflix content
MTV’S “KILLER PARTY”
Want to get millennials in a tizzy? Kill
all their favourite stars. For its promo
for the new Scream series (based
on the popular Wes Craven movie
franchise), MTV didn’t feel the need to
bring back Ghostface.
Instead, it featured the stars of its
top shows (like Awkward, Teen Wolf
and Faking It) all dead after what
appears to be a bloody slaughter at
a party.
Coupled with a behind-the-scenes
video of the promo’s production, the
spot generated online buzz among its
core demo for the series’ premiere.
TO STREAM OR NOT TO
STREAM?
71%
of Canadians say traditional TV is
either very or somewhat important in
their lives today, while 34% say the
same for web-enabled TV
63%
of Canadians say traditional TV will
remain
important in their lives three
r
yyears from now, while 46% say the
same for web-enabled TV
KEEP YOUR FRIENDS
CLOSE AND YOUR
DEVICES CLOSER
29%
of Canadians don’t use a second
screen while watching TV
For the 88%
age
8% of viewers ag
g 18 to
ge
34 who do use a second screen:
36%
prefer a smartphone
31%
prefer a PC
20%
prefer a tablet
1%
use another unspecified device
*Data from IAB/Nielsen Survey, Media Technology Monitor, NLogic, Numeris TV
Meter, TVB and ZenithOptimedia’s Media Consumption Forecasts 2015 study
July/August 2015
9
2015-06-12 2:26 PM
MCDONALD’S CANADIAN
ADVENTURE
M
Clockwise from left:
The Maple Bacon
Poutine, McLobster
and Chocolate
Nanaimo Sundae
– a sampling of the
regional favourites
McDonald’s is offering
this summer.
10
cDonald’s Canada is in the midst of a monthlong exploration of regional lavour, the brand’s
latest attempt to tap into Canadian tastes and
diversify its menu.
Running June 3 until July 9, “The Great Canadian Taste
Adventure” will see ive products, representing different
regions of the country, sold in-store for a limited time.
These include the Cottage Country Chicken sandwich, using
chickens raised in Ontario, the Western BBQ Burger with
Alberta beef, the return of the McLobster using lobster
caught in Atlantic Canada, the Chocolate Nanaimo Sundae,
a tribute to the dessert created in the B.C. town, and the
Maple Bacon Poutine with Quebec cheese curds and maple.
More than 80% of the food McDonald’s uses in Canada
is already sourced here, but Antoinette Benoit, SVP of
marketing at the QSR, says the campaign, which performed
above forecasted results in its initial days, is meant to
create fun around that fact in a short, sharp concept. The
products debuting during the campaign were put through
extensive focus groups and testing, with some sampled over
200 times to determine each ingredient.
“This is also an expression of how much we have been
listening to our customers,” says Benoit, which plays
By Josh Kolm
off a theme in its recent, customer-focused
“Welcome to McDonald’s” campaign. “You
can think about diversity in different ways
in Canada, and they got us to understand
that also means diversity in regions. That
helped us relect on what tastes are special to
different Canadians.”
The program is being supported with a
campaign in print, radio and TV by Cossette,
with media by OMD, that celebrates uniquely
Canadian food and McDonald’s role in
contributing to it. Tribal Worldwide Canada
is handling digital, which includes the
“Great Canadian Taste Passport” app, which
customers can use to take and share photos as
they try each product. Those who do can win a
trip to a region spotlighted in the campaign.
Meanwhile, McDonald’s has also been
celebrating the McFlurry’s anniversary with
a campaign that “connects the dots” from
its roots in New Brunswick to becoming a
universal brand, which the company sees as
a point of honour and a way to connect to its
customers’ national pride.
“When you have this kind of food event, it’s about being
humble,” Benoit says of McDonald’s approach to tapping
into areas of Canadian pride. “We can celebrate the
Canadian taste, but it isn’t our taste. We’re interpreting
the culture in our own, respectful way. It’s all about
connecting with Canadians and doing things they can
relate to, but only where we are relevant.”
It’s also in the midst of its “Salad Society” campaign,
promoting new additions to its range of salads. News
that the QSR would have health-food favourite kale on
the menu beside McFlurries and Big Macs was met with
skepticism and jokes online. But as was the case when
developing the “Taste Adventure,” it was done in response
to what McDonald’s heard from its customers, namely that
kale was a popular ingredient that could modernize and
differentiate its long-standing salad offering. Benoit says
it’s part of an effort to offer more menu choices so it can
be relevant to as many consumers as possible.
“We have new occasions we’ve created with things like
salads and McCafé, but people still expect the burgers
and fries and ice cream,” Benoit says. “So we need to stay
contemporary on that too, and you’ll see us celebrating
our core offering in the coming months.”
2015-06-11 7:16 PM
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MEET THE NEW BROADCASTERS
There’s a new breed of social influencers on the horizon. They’re chatty, require very little equipment to share
their thoughts with the public, and they’re eager to feed society’s craving for instant consumption. Could
Periscope broadcasters, who live-stream the world to the world, be the next online superstars? And how can
BY JENNIFER HORN
brands get in front of them?
I
FEATURED PHOTOS COURTESY OF TWITTER/PERISCOPE
t’s been the best of times and the
worst of times for Periscope. The
three-month-old live-streaming
app is barely a toddler (in tech
years), and it’s already been given
a spanking. The industry’s still
shaking its inger at the Twitterowned app for bringing piracy
concerns to the fore when boxing
champions Mayweather and
Pacquiao went head-to-head and
Periscope users went television-tophone (essentially live-streaming
the pay-per-view match via the app
for thousands to watch gratis).
Indeed, we’re entering a “new age
of piracy,” news reports stated at
the time, adding fuel to networks’
12
concerns of apps like Periscope
and competitor Meerkat stealing
eyeballs by live-streaming their
content. But amidst the negative
press, many missed the birth of
what Mitch Joel is calling “the new
broadcaster.” The president of
Montreal-based digital shop Mirum
writes in his agency blog Six Pixels
of Separation that “a new kind of
media celebrity is brewing.”
This new celeb on the scene
will eventually be likened to the
vloggers and Viners who have
captured the undying attention of
the latest tech-hungry generation
(see p. 36), predicts Joel. They take
the world as they see it and add a
layer of personal commentary, with
the “ight of the century” being one
of the irst big instances of this live
curation of existing content, he adds.
“While the media was focused
on the piracy issues, there was a
little nuanced component [that was
missed]. Some people, who are real
boxing enthusiasts, were not only
Periscoping the event, but doing
their own colour commentary as
the event was happening.” Some
viewers even went as far as to say
the streamers were better than the
paid announcers, adds Joel. They
reported a detailed play-by-play,
while those tuning in watched,
listened and left “hearts” (the app’s
equivalent of “likes”) and comments
via the chat feature.
The emergence of this new breed
of broadcasters, some of whom
are ordinary people with little
experience creating social content,
but already boast thousands of
followers, is no coincidence. Joel
attributes their arrival to three
historical moments: the launch of
TV series Mystery Science Theater
3000 in the ’80s and ’90s, which
featured a man and his sidekick
robots watching and commenting
on B-movies while they played on
a cinema screen; the day Howard
Stern tweeted through a weekend
TV broadcast of his ilm Private
Parts, which helped lead to the nowpopular live-tweeting trend; and
when Amazon purchased Twitch,
a gaming portal where people can
watch others live-play and talk
about videogames.
These events helped spawn a new
entertainment subculture, says Joel,
Creative.JulyAug15.indd 12
2015-06-11 5:40 PM
where people exhibit their innate
human curiosity for stories told
from perspectives they haven’t
seen before (one of the reasons
drones and GoPro cameras are
such crowd-pleasers).
So what does this mean for
brands? And how can they tap
these so-called “new broadcasters?”
Brand events could be ampliied
through behind-the-scenes
commentary, making marketing
stunts more scalable by reaching a
broader audience in real time, notes
Joel. “The ability for individuals to
create new forms of content – and
act like hosts on top of an event – is
becoming much easier since live-
streaming tools like Meerkat and
Periscope took hold.”
What’s more, their audiences
are also active participants and can
help to steer conversations with
broadcasters. For example, veteran
magician Jon Jacques invites his
group of voluble Periscope fans
(of which there can be up to 400
at any given time) to direct him
during live impromptu broadcasts
on the streets of New York. To
prove that his magic tricks are
unstaged, and add a level of
intimacy to the experience, Jacques
asks viewers to pick any person on
the street for him to perform for.
“You look at any form of
marketing, and you can really tell
a story,” says Joel. “Imagine you’re
Doritos and you’re about to shoot
your next spot for the Super Bowl.
Now imagine being able to livestream the process, giving it special
exclusivity.” That piece of content,
which would have otherwise been
uploaded to YouTube days later,
now has the advantage of receiving
direct fan feedback, allowing the
brand to act on it.
“Think about all the money
that’s put into experiential
marketing. Now think about all the
people who can’t be there. This is a
tool that completely implodes most
of the issues.”
PERISCOPE (BEST) PRACTICES
So you have another tool in the kit, and you’re wondering how to use it. Some early adopters of Periscope have found ways to get in front of audiences
(beyond tapping influential broadcasters), so here’s a cheat sheet with a few of the best uses to get your head churning with ideas.
GET IN FRONT OF A
CROWD, WHEREVER
HOST A LIVE SHOW
Just before bedtime, one April
evening, U.S. publisher Hearst
unleashed 18 live broadcasts, one
for each of its magazine and digital
brands. The simultaneous blasts
of video were accompanied by
the hashtag #BedtimeStory and
featured editors and personalities
providing pre-sleep entertainment.
For instance, Cosmopolitan’s
“resident shirtless hunk” CJ
Richards was shown reading
children’s book Goodnight Moon
(while cuddling a kitten, natch).
On another channel, for Elle.com,
editor Leah Chernikoff was featured
interviewing model Elly Mayday
about her evening beauty routine.
Who says tennis rivalries should only
be squashed on the court? Luxury
watchmaker Tag Heuer hosted a
full-on tennis match outside one of
its stores on the Champs-Élysées
in Paris last May, and turned to
Periscope to document it and
reach audiences from continent to
continent. The two opponents, Maria
Sharapova and Kei Nishikori, went
against each other in the brand’s
“Don’t crack under pressure” match,
which attracted crowds on the street
and online with people checking in
from all parts of the world.
PRESENT A Q&A SESSION
Usually with film premieres, a Q&A
session happens post-screening,
but when director Craig Goodwill
debuted his movie Patch Town in
New York in early June, he got chatty
with the audience smack-bang in
the middle of the show. With the
help of Toronto’s Rethink, Goodwill
live-streamed the screening inside
a Greenwich Village cinema via
Periscope and invited people to
chime in with questions related
to the making of the film, which is
about a grown-up Cabbage Patch
Kid who was forgotten and betrayed
by his adoptive mother.
MAKE LIVE BRANDED
CONTENT MORE LIVE
If you’ve ever heard of the Volvo
Ocean Race, you’ll know it’s one of
the most extreme round-the-world
sailing races, with teams racing
across four oceans in a Volvo Ocean
boat. It’s the longest offshore race,
lasting nine months, and the teams
are documented each step of the
way, with video segments regularly
uploaded online. But this year, the
brand is using Periscope to make
the experience (which ends midJune) even more real-time, having
teammates show a live perspective
of life on the boat, and even inviting
people to interact with the sailors.
July/August 2015
Creative.JulyAug15.indd 13
13
2015-06-11 5:40 PM
BY
HARMEET
SINGH
DIAGEO’S DOMESTIC PLAN
HOW THE LIQUOR COMPANY
IS LOOKING TO GROW – AND STAY
AHEAD – BY PAYING ATTENTION TO
WHAT CANADIANS ARE REALLY ABOUT.
S
14
how them the people, the place and the pour.
For Iain Chalmers, VP marketing and innovation at
Diageo Canada, that’s the right recipe for marketing the
liquor giant’s brands here.
U.K.-based Diageo is among the top companies for
spirits, both worldwide and in Canada (where it has about
a 30% market share), with brands like Smirnoff, Crown
Royal and Johnnie Walker continuing to dominate sales in
their categories.
In a world where multinationals are increasingly
repurposing ads from global or U.S. creative, Diageo is
recognizing the importance of homegrown work. Roughly
80% of the company’s Canadian marketing (for which
budget has been increasing each year) is produced
domestically, led by Chalmers – a former CPG marketer
who has been with Diageo since 2008 – and his internal
staff of 20 people. Working with six agencies currently,
Diageo is gaining insights on Canadian taste proiles and
perceptions about things like social status, helping steer
creative for both established and new brands.
Earlier this year for example, the company went
local with its Extreme Group-created Captain Morgan
campaign targeted to Atlantic Canadians, all about how
the rum is a little different out there (the East Coast
accounts for half of the company’s Canadian white rum
sales, making it a key market for Diageo).
The company has more than 50 brands in Canada,
with roughly 1,600 active SKUs. On an ongoing basis, it
has about 22 active marketing campaigns, and between
15 and 20 product-related launches, which has been
increasing each year.
But as spirit sales remain steady here, Diageo is
tapping into other growing segments to pique the
interest of ickle millennials and capitalize on the
demand for more diverse lavours from Canadians.
Diageo.JulyAug15B.indd 14
2015-06-11 5:41 PM
Above: A selection
of Diageo’s brands
flanked by the new
Jeremiah Weed “Sip
on That” campaign,
which hopes to draw
millennials with the
right amount
of edginess.
Enter Jeremiah Weed, the Southern-style U.S. brand
Diageo is betting on here by giving it a Canadian twist.
South of the border, Jeremiah Weed Sweet Tea with
vodka was successful, but sales were just steady, and it is
now refocusing on bourbon-based products and changing
the look of its brand. “This is really about staying on
trend,” he says. “Bourbon’s just not as big in Canada.”
But the iced tea trend is picking up here, making it the
right place to bring the Jeremiah Weed name.
The new malt-based Jeremiah Weed Spiked Iced Tea
product, launching this summer, has been adapted to the
Canadian palate in three lavours, speciically known to
do well in Canada – lemon, peach and raspberry.
“We are starting purely from scratch,” Chalmers says
of the launch, since Jeremiah Weed has no real brand
awareness here.
The brand’s cheeky “Sip on That” launch campaign,
other lavoured drinks, with a fall in sales for regular
beer, he notes. For the year ending March 31, 2014, the
ciders, coolers and refreshment beverages category in
Canada grew 9.5%, outpacing the growth rates of wine
and spirits. That year, sales for that segment reached
$692.9 million.
Products like Bud Light Lime (and more recently,
Apple) have been emerging to keep up, Chalmers notes.
Jeremiah Weed itself will go head to head with products
from the Twisted Tea Brewing Company and American
Vintage Hard Iced Tea. The trend toward more lavour
variety also led Diageo to launch Bevé last year, the
company’s Canadian-speciic canned vodka-based
sparkling fruit drink.
Earlier this year, Canada Dry Mott’s also launched
Snapple Spiked Peach Tea Vodka, partially to breathe
new life into the Snapple brand, but also to keep up with
created by Toronto agency Trevor//Peter, targets
millennials through a mainly digital push, with some
radio components that have a bit of Southern twang.
The ads focus on offering up some food for thought
that’s likely to resonate with the brand’s target
demographic of legal drinking age to 29, like “How many
synonyms are there for thesaurus?”
With a name and logo that have tested well among
Canadians, Diageo is also launching experiential elements,
using an old-school van (picture Scooby Doo and his
gang) to hand out T-shirts, frisbees and other swag with
the Jeremiah Weed branding to get young people talking.
“It’s really getting at [consumers] in more of an
underground way,” Chalmers says. The last thing that
works for a brand like this is mass media, he notes,
pointing to brands like Pabst Blue Ribbon that he says
seem to lose their cool factor once they get too popular.
The Jeremiah Weed launch is the latest example of
the company’s focus on ready-to-drink canned products.
Currently, Diageo has a 15% market share in ready-todrink, Chalmers says.
The past three years has seen the rise of cider and
consumer preference for more lavour proiles.
“We always have to have new lavours, new brands...to
be able to keep things fresh,” Chalmers says. “Canadians
are promiscuous when it comes to ready-to-drink and
beer products in general.”
As tastes evolve, innovation – and thinking two to three
years ahead – has been key for Diageo. In early May, the
company announced a $6.4 million investment in its
Valleyield, QC facility to add a new canning line, which it
said would be used for a range of ready-to-drink products.
In August, it will also bring Guinness Blonde American
Lager to Canada, six months after launching in the U.S.
Its debut here will again be relective of the different
approach needed to appeal to Canucks, Chalmers says.
South of the border, the marketing is focused on
the American Lager name (it’s brewed in the States
and made from U.S.-grown hops). Down there, the
advertising leans toward American roots and heritage,
playing up the home-brewed factor.
Still, despite importing it here, the “American Lager”
marketing just doesn’t jibe and would be perceived as a
potentially watered down drink, Chalmers says. Instead,
July/August 2015
15
2015-06-12 2:46 PM
Diageo will work with TrafikGroup on a campaign
focused more on the beer as the Blonde of one’s dreams.
The Guinness brand is also the company’s strength
as the craft beer market grows to be more competitive,
since it’s a brand that already often appeals to more
sophisticated tastes, Chalmers says. The beer brand will
continue to innovate, appealing to Canadians’ desire for
new tastes, as Guinness itself shifts from what was just a
stout-maker to a full brewer business, he adds.
Also in the more premium realm is Ciroc, Diageo’s
vodka brand, which launched in Canada in 2013. At that
time, the brand introduced its lavoured products to the
market and will bring Ciroc Ultra Premium here this
Above: Repurposed
creative just wouldn’t
do for Diageo, so it
took a Canada-specific
approach for some
of its most popular
brands.
16
summer. “It’s one where there’s been a lot of pent-up
demand for it to get it into this market,” Chalmers says.
Elsewhere in the world, Ciroc is most associated with
rapper Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, its brand ambassador.
Diageo couldn’t use Diddy in its ads north of the
border even if it wanted to – advertising standards in
Canada prohibit using celebrities to sell alcohol.
But it’s no bother. The appeal of Diddy and his inner
circle just doesn’t resonate here. “The biggest thing is
this element of status and aspiration and how Canadians
look at that,” Chalmers says. (Americans tend to be much
more focused on their individual upward momentum
and might ind celebrity lifestyles worth aspiring to, but
Canadians don’t tend to ind that lash as appealing.)
That isn’t unique to spirits, Chalmers points out – think
car ads in the U.S. focused on the guy who’s “made it”
versus Canadian ads focused on functional beneits.
Being a luxury brand, seeding will be centred
somewhat on exclusivity, through bottle service at certain
clubs in major cities, followed by a more mass approach
with sponsorships at the Toronto International Film
Festival, along with the Raptors and the NBA in Canada.
“We still have to be able to make sure it’s a premium
spirit – there’s an element of luxury behind it, but it’s
attainable luxury.”
That more humble approach isn’t just for a luxury
brand like Ciroc. Last year, when Smirnoff launched its
“Exclusively for Everybody” campaign in the U.S., the
tagline was confusing to Canucks. “Exclusively doesn’t
really mean anything to Canadians because we’re an
inclusive culture,” he says.
Instead, working with TrafikGroup, the brand used
the “people, place, pour” philosophy to launch its “This
is Happening” campaign here, showing people enjoying
their Smirnoff drinks with
friends at cottages or house
parties (in other words, more
down-to-earth scenarios).
Canadians are likely to
see more similar advertising
coming, Chalmers says. With
Diageo’s Crown Royal brand, for
example, upcoming marketing
will showcase its heritage
and quality. Last year, when
celebrating the whisky’s 75th
anniversary here, the return of
its purple bag led to a sales lift.
“We know we need to bring
back some of the quality
credentials in Canadian whisky,”
Chalmers says of future work
for Crown Royal. While Scotch
and bourbon ads feature wood
barrels and rich imagery, Canadian whiskies have relied
on humour or sports igures for their marketing.
The company is also using its presence in Gimli, MB
(outside Winnipeg), home to its Crown Royal distillery,
to get its parent company name out in the community
by working with local boards and tourism bodies to talk
about Diageo.
Despite having a number of top-selling brands, Diageo
itself isn’t exactly the household name that a company
like Procter and Gamble is. It’s a ine balance to promote
the company brand and keep the focus on its portfolio,
but in Canada at least, it’s making strides, Chalmers says.
In July, Diageo will move its Canadian headquarters
from a comparatively residential area of Toronto to the
city’s downtown core. The move will allow the company
to have more of a face in the heart of the Entertainment
District’s bars and restaurants through sponsoring
activities, Chalmers says, adding that Diageo is working
on a strategy to grow its name.
With its people in place, perhaps the sales will
continue to pour in.
2015-06-11 5:42 PM
Sponsored Content
CBC/Radio-Canada’s
post-hockey hat trick
Schitt’s Creek
This Life
Les dieux de la danse
From a deeper
investment in
arts, a focus on
amateur sports
and a slate
of engaging
new series, the
pubcaster is
just getting into
its groove.
anadians, brace yourself: “There is life
after hockey,” says Jean Mongeau, GM
and chief revenue officer at CBC/RadioCanada. “Hockey has not been on RadioCanada for over a decade, and we’ve
clearly been able to live well without it.”
Of course, the pubcaster still holds
the sport in high regards, but Mongeau says since
reducing its commitment to hockey in 2013, they’ve
found a new calling: amateur sports.
Banking on the mammoth deal signed in 2014,
which secured the Olympic broadcasts through to
2020, CBC/Radio-Canada has been in talks with
advertisers across Canada to build out programs that
meets their needs, Mongeau says.
C
Road to Rio
The Olympics plan, which will be unveiled in the next
month, is based on three pillars. First, the CBC will
focus its attention on the athletes themselves, following
them as they develop on their Olympic journey. Second,
content will look at the communities that help build these
athletes up, highlighting the support required to actually
make it to the Games. Finally, of course, the crescendo:
the Olympics themselves (which include Brazil in 2016,
South Korea in 2018, and Japan in 2020).
“Partners kept telling us they were looking to
sustain their presence with the Olympics outside the
actual games,” he says. “And we plan to deliver that.”
This initiative will, he hopes, provide more
opportunities for advertisers to reach their audience,
help connect brands with communities across Canada,
as well as showcase the athletes to Canadians, building
on the Olympics’ momentum.
Making Arts Accessible
Of course, sports isn’t CBC/Radio-Canada’s only game:
Mongeau says it’s delving deeper into the arts space,
continually moving away from the elitist stigma that’s
traditionally been associated with the pubcaster.
Specifically, while the network will continue to
support music and literature, he says they’ll also invest
into the performing and visual arts. He points to the
upcoming CBC Arts, a hub through which art-related
content will be aggregated and which artists will be
invited to contribute.
“Almost 80% of the Canadian population say they’re
interested in some form of art,” he says. “This will be a
great opportunity for advertisers looking to expand their
philanthropic work to connect with consumers. This is
what they want.”
Coming Up This Fall
Also in the works is a slate of new programming to be
launched this fall and winter, building on the success of
last year’s hit shows, including Schitt’s Creek (which
pulled in more than a million viewers to its premiere
episode), The Book of Negroes (1.9 million Canadians
watched the premiere) and X Company (average of
900,000 views per week).
This year’s CBC docket includes 10 new shows, from
The Romeo Section, an hour-long serialized espionage
drama about a professor who manages a roster of spies,
to This Life, which follows the end-of-life of Natalie
Lawson, as she and her family deal with her terminal
cancer diagnosis. Over on the French side, Mongeau
points to Les dieux de la danse as one to watch; the
reality competition sees 16 Quebec pairs of celebrities
face off in a dance competition.
All the shows are fully produced here in Canada,
which Mongeau says is CBC/Radio-Canada’s biggest
asset.
Rebranded Media Solutions Team
“So many advertisers are looking to get as close to the
program as possible these days,” he says. “We control the
content, therefore we control the relationships with the
production companies and are able to respond to these
advertising demands.”
He points to the 250-strong Media Solutions team as
the key driver to this success. The organization merged its
CBC & Radio-Canada Sales departments under a single
umbrella last April, rebranding as Media Solutions, a nod
to the fact that the team can help solve advertiser’s needs on
a national and regional basis, in both French and English.
“We’re the only media company to offer true national
conventional networks in both languages,” he says.
“And when you add to that our five specialty channels,
our radio music networks and our digital assets
(mobile, video and desktop) – we feel that combination
and the creativity of our team can provide incredible
opportunities for our partners.”
Mary Kreuk
Executive Director,
Multiplatform Media Sales,
CBC & Radio-Canada Media Solutions
mary.kreuk@cbc.ca
(416) 205-2940
ST.26616.CBC.Ad.indd 1
2015-06-12 3:57 PM
BY EMILY WEXLER
IF THE TELEVISION LANDSCAPE SEEMED
volatile last year, this year we’ve entered full
earthquake status. Online viewing is no longer a
looming threat to traditional TV – it’s now a part
of our reality, and networks are putting their hats
fully into the ring with Rogers and Shaw’s Shomi
and Bell’s CraveTV (competing, of course, with
Netflix). And then there’s that whole other form of
online viewing that’s stealing eyeballs – YouTube
and the MCNs with their star power that seems to
have gone from niche to mainstream overnight (at
least for its Gen Z target). More on how that world is
exploding on p. 36.
Meanwhile, the specialty channels have gone into
survival mode, with networks bunkering down and
188
not coming up for air until they figure out a plan to
save their precious channels (or kill them softly) in
light of the CRTC’s decision to allow pick-and-pay
next year. The way MediaCom’s Michael Neale sees
it, most channels can fit into one of three buckets –
the current champs, the likely survivors and the ones
in danger of extinction. See p. 30 for more on what
the nets have been doing so far to ensure survival.
But despite the shaky ground, TV is still a
powerhouse, and the show(s) must go on. This
year, the conventional networks are betting big
on drama and leaving the reality to the specialty
channels. Read on to learn about this year’s crop of
new shows.
Batten down the hatches – it’s a jungle out there.
w
ww
w w.strategyonline
ww
w.strategyon
ategyon
egyonline.ca
nlii e.c
nl
e ca
PrimeBattles.JulyAug15.indd 18
2015-06-11 7:02 PM
THE PRIMETIME JUNGLE HEATS UP
Hope springs eternal this fall, with the networks making big bets on superheroes, brazen doctors,
mockumentaries, some enigmatic crime series and a bit of nostalgia. We asked three of Canada’s media
experts – PHD’s managing director of broadcast media Christina Laczka; Mindshare media director
Victoria Morris; and Maxus Canada director Carolyn Froude – to chime in on this year’s potential big
wins and how they stack up against others in their genres. In an age of PVRs and binge watching, which
BY HARMEET SINGH AND JOSH KOLM
genres will have standout stars, and which will fall short?
ARE SUPERHEROES STILL WINNING?
One need only look at the box office numbers for comic book movies and the
ratings Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter pulled in for CTV this year to see
that superheroes remain a hot property.
But both Laczka and Froude expressed worry that Supergirl (pictured), airing
on Mondays at 8 p.m. on Global and CBS starting in November, might be overkill
in the genre. Even though there’s demand for female superheroes and an appeal
for younger viewers, Laczka points out that Superman’s younger, female cousin
is not a big name in the
pantheon of DC Comics.
Add to that the fact that
she is played by Melissa
Benoist – an actress best
known for supporting roles
on Glee and the film Whiplash
– and the show has little
notoriety in what’s becoming
a more crowded genre.
Even though Supergirl
might be on shaky ground,
Global does have another
horse in the superhero race
to compete with CTV’s roster.
Heroes Reborn, airing on
Thursday nights at 8 p.m.
on Global and NBC, is a
13-episode mini-series that
retells the story of the original series, which went off the air in 2010 after four
seasons. The reboot – up against The Big Bang Theory – will take some of the
more recognizable original characters and mix them with a new batch of people
who suddenly develop super powers.
“There was huge love for the original, so the characters are well known
wn
enough that there’s interest,” Laczka says. “The best thing NBC is doing is a
preceeding digital series to introduce the new characters, so there will bee enough
excitement that [it will] do well for a limited run.”
Morris adds that Heroes Reborn could provide an alternative to other shows
in the genre – especially the ones from CW that tend to skew to a slightlyy
younger audience – for older viewers, both those who watched the
original series and those attracted to a slightly darker tone.
KIND OF A FUNNY STORY(TELLING
FORMAT)
The Muppets (pictured above), Mondays at 8 p.m. on City and Tuesdays at
8 p.m. on ABC, takes a cue from The Office and Modern Family, debuting in
a mockumentary format that aims to give a behind-the-scenes look into the
lives of the beloved characters.
Part of the show’s appeal will be the nostalgia factor for adults who
watched the original show in the ’80s. The new series does drop more
lines with a wink and a nudge to adult viewers (“The band is always happy.
Legally now,” Kermit says to the camera in the trailer). But what will make it
work – as is usually the case for The Muppets – is its broad appeal.
“It still gives viewers a family-friendly environment,” Froude says.
“There’s no murder, there’s nothing scary, although the nostalgia and
format will skew to an older audience.”
“It’s not a DVR or VOD show, it’ll be great family viewing, and like the
original, they can bring some stars into the mix to broaden the appeal even
more,” Laczka says.
While Life in Pieces (pictured below), Mondays at 8:30 p.m. on City and
CBS, has been gaining ccomparisons to Modern Family, it does buck the
format for its own storytelling method. Each episode
mockumentary forma
will be retold through the eyes of a different
w
character, based on their own version of events.
Morris says it won’t be a top show, but will
get a following, something Laczka adds will
come from a cast that includes Diane West,
James Brolin, Colin Hanks and Betsy Brandt.
July/August 2015
19
2015-06-11 7:02 PM
WILL TEENS SCREAM
FOR PRIMETIME?
BAD COMEDIC TIMING?
Angel from Hell, airing Fridays at 8 p.m. on Global
beginning in November, features Jane Lynch
(pictured above, right) as an inappropriate, loudmouthed guardian angel.
“I love Jane Lynch, but I really hope she can carry
a show,” Maxus’ Froude says. “I’m used to seeing
her as a supporting character, so fingers crossed,
because it looked pretty funny.”
However, it is airing in post-release in Canada (it
will run Thursday nights on CBS), which PHD’s Laczka
says might mean it’s facing a tough time here.
Things look a bit more bleak for City and Fox’s
block of comedy on Tuesday, with Grandfathered
airing at 8 p.m., followed by The Grinder at 8:30 p.m.
Rob Lowe (pictured centre) stars in the latter as a
former TV lawyer who joins his family’s firm. It didn’t
seem very funny to Froude, who found more to like in
Grandfathered, starring John Stamos (pictured above,
left) as an aging lothario who discovers he has a son,
plus a granddaughter.
The series has comedic potential and over-30
appeal, but Laczka says the women drawn in by
Stamos as lead actor won’t offset its scheduling
challenges. In addition to facing The Muppets, both it
and The Grinder are up against The Flash, NCIS and
The Voice, which Laczka says will make it tough.
Meanwhile, People are Talking, a new comedy
airing Fridays at 8:30 p.m. on Global and NBC will
be up against The Amazing Race and Undateable.
Starring Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Saved by the Bell), the
new series features a pair of neighbouring couples
examining issues from sex to race. It looked funny
and reflects the surge in comedies with more ethnic
diversity in their casts, Froude says.
But Laczka says her hopes for the comedy aren’t
high, mostly because it was created by DJ Nash,
whose track record is full of shows that failed to
make it past a season, including ‘Til Death. “It’s great
that shows are examining these [issues], I just don’t
know if this creator is the one to do it justice.”
ADDING A LITTLE VARIETY
While reality shows like The Voice and MasterChef still
draw strong ratings, no conventional networks will be
debuting new reality this fall, perhaps signalling that its
popularity in primetime is coming to an end.
However, Best Time Ever, an adaptation of U.K. variety
show Saturday Night Takeaway will combine comedy bits,
music and in-studio games. Airing Tuesdays at 10
p.m. on CTV Two and NBC with a 10-episode
run, the show could fill a hole for viewers still
looking for singing and dancing, says Laczka.
“I don’t think it’s going to be a hit, but it’s
going to be that same kind of fun, mindless
viewing,” she says. “And there’s room for
20
Mix some millennial stars and a sorority
house with horror movie veteran Jamie
Lee Curtis (pictured), and you get Scream
Queens, airing Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on City
and Fox. Created by Ryan Murphy, the brain
behind Glee and American Horror Story, the
show is likely to be a hit among millennial and
Gen Z females.
The series has a similar feel to the
Scream movie franchise (which will also be
brought to the small screen
this year). It has a fun
factor to it, including
the slight silliness
of the masked
killer, Froude says.
That unique blend of
comedy and horror is
likely to be a draw for a younger
demo, many of whom are CW watchers, she
points out. It’s also likely to pick up from
Glee’s audience, both because of its casting
of that show’s youthful star Lea Michele,
and its hybrid genre.
The 9 to 10 p.m. time slot does bring
tough competition against Agents of
S.H.I.E.L.D., Laczka notes. That said, many of
the show’s millennial viewers might be tuning
in at off hours to watch. The real challenge
may be surviving past one season, she says.
this kind of show, so long as they keep it to its limited run
before people get tired of it.”
While Mindshare’s Morris says
the reality market is saturated and
the impending finale of American Idol
signals that singing competitions are
done, host Neil Patrick Harris has built
up enough of a following that a show centred on him could
be different and entertaining enough for viewers.
“Harris is very funny and I think people will tune in even
if they don’t really know what the show is about just to see
him,” Morris says.
Laczka does add, however, airing the show at 10 p.m. is
strange, as it seems perfect for family viewing.
2015-06-11 7:02 PM
INTRODUCING
the new
SUPERSTARS
of
GLOBAL
SUPERGIRL
LIMITLESS
THE LATE SHOW
WITH STEPHEN COLBERT
MINORITY REPORT
HEROES: REBORN
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REAL CANADIAN STORIES
CBC still has some bets on factual TV, although it’s
venturing away from the competition show space.
Six-part series Keeping Canada Alive (pictured left),
airing Sundays at 9 p.m., was shot during a 24-hour
period in hospitals and trauma centres across the
country to capture the everyday realities of patients
and health care providers in Canada.
“Canadians are drawn to their own stories and
understanding what’s going on in the country,” PHD’s
Laczka says. “CBC tends to have a higher eastern
audience with things like this, as well as parts of
the Prairies. But in Ontario and B.C., the tastes are
different, so we’ll see if it gets attention there.”
The broadcaster’s CBC Arts cross-platform
culture project is also set to launch this
summer, which will take its form on TV with
limited run series Crash Gallery debuting on
Fridays at 8:30 p.m. in October. That show
pits four artists against each other in creative
tasks in a non-elimination competition that
aims to highlight the creative process.
Interrupt This Program will take over its
time slot in November, examining the vibrant
arts and culture communities that have thrived
in cities around the globe otherwise torn apart
by war or political unrest. Meanwhile, weekly
half-hour show Exhibitionists, which has yet
to be given a time slot, will dive deep into how
both established and up-and-coming Canadian
artists find their inspiration.
THRILL SEEKERS
A mysterious Jane Doe is literally let out of a bag in
Times Square, inexplicably covered in tattoos, with
zero memory of who she is or how she got there.
That’s the gist of Blindspot (pictured bottom), airing
on CTV Mondays at 9 p.m. and at 10 p.m. on NBC.
The uniqueness of the concept makes it a
standout for Mindshare’s Morris. “It looks really
intense and very good,” she says, noting the show
is a mix of crime, thriller and sci-fi. It also has some
style elements reminiscent of Orphan Black, which
make it a potential winner. “I think this will do well
just because it’s kind of unique,” Morris says.
Along with competition from surprise hit Scorpion,
Blindspot will also go up against Minority Report
(pictured far right), airing Mondays at 9 p.m. on
Global and Fox. Set 10 years after the events of the
Tom Cruise film, the series follows one of the movie’s
crime-predicting precognitive triplets as he tries to
operate in the regular world but gets sucked back into
crime fighting. “They seemed to have strayed from the
original movie storyline,” Morris says. “I don’t know
how well that concept is going to translate.”
Minority Report is a bit of a nostalgia play, as is the
adaptation of Limitless (pictured above right), airing
on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on Global and CBS. However,
what that reboot has that Minority Report doesn’t
is the involvement of its star (Bradley Cooper) as an
executive producer and guest recurring actor.
Laczka says without Cruise, there isn’t enough to
draw in viewers to Minority Report and the original
film, despite its success, doesn’t have a devoted
22
fanbase that will follow it to TV, especially when
compared to the competition, Blindspot and Scorpion.
Still, Limitless may not be able to live up to the
hype. “At the Upfronts, the expectation was high, the
buzz was good,” Maxus’ Froude says. Unfortunately, it’s
a little too similar to the movie and the pilot essentially
shows the same experience as the film – a character
able to gain superhuman abilities for a short time by
taking one mysterious pill, she adds.
Still, Bradley Cooper’s involvement may help it
succeed, Laczka says.
2015-06-11 7:03 PM
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SMOOTH CRIMINALS
Quantico (pictured), airing Sundays at 10 p.m. on
CTV, features Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra
as an FBI trainee accused of being behind the most
devastating terrorist attack in America since 9/11,
leading her to investigate her classmates to find the
real culprit.
The show, which will compete with the longrunning Bones on Global, has uniqueness, and while
the storyline might also lack longevity because of
the focus on one major event, a dive into character
backstories might have viewers coming back for
more, PHD’s Laczka says. “What’s really important
now is that there’s some kind of backstory to keep
people coming back,” she says. “The procedurals
don’t seem to be working as well, so keeping them
coming back for more works.”
Chopra’s growing recognition in North America
might also work for the show and could draw in a
South Asian audience, Mindshare’s Morris notes.
On the homegrown side comes The Romeo
Section, new to CBC’s roster this October, airing
Wednesdays at 9 p.m. The hour-long drama is set
in Vancouver and follows Prof. Wolfgang McGee, an
academic who also happens to manage a group of
espionage assets. Known as Romeo or Juliet spies,
the informants have intimate relationships with
PAGING THE DOCTORS
With the demise of Grey’s Anatomy’s McDreamy (Patrick Dempsey), there’s
a chance some viewers might begin flocking away from the long-running
success. But never fear, the medical drama isn’t dead on the table just yet.
Of the shows in that genre launching this fall, Code Black (pictured), airing
on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. on CTV and CBS, is pegged to be a winner. The
24
targets, and McGee himself is a semi-retired agent.
Da Vinci’s Inquest showrunner Chris Haddock’s
successful track record, coupled with the show’s
character-building possibilities make The Romeo
Section a potential hit for CBC, Laczka says. After
doing fairly well with spy thriller X Company, CBC is
sticking with what works for it, she says.
Along with going up against Modern Family,
Criminal Minds and Chicago Med, the show will also
compete with Wednesday night hockey, but that
isn’t much of a concern since the show – and CBC
generally – skews more female, Laczka adds.
series, reminiscent of ER, stars Marcia Gay Harden (The Newsroom) as a
tough emergency room doctor guiding a group of comparatively naive medical
residents in a busy Los Angeles hospital.
“It looks very high production [and] it’s a great cast,” Morris says. “The
medical dramas are kind of dwindling since House,” she notes.
“You could feel the audience response in the room when they presented it,”
Maxus’ Froude says. “I’m not into medical dramas, but the trailer is gripping.
It kind of sucks you in.”
The nostalgia factor of ER might also help draw in an audience, Laczka
says, although its biggest strength is its time slot – the series will stack up
against Chicago P.D. which hasn’t had a big following in Canada.
However, perhaps Chicago Med will fare better than its sister show.
Airing on Global Wednesdays at 9 p.m., up against Criminal Minds, Law &
Order: SVU and Modern Family, the series is the latest spinoff in the Chicago
franchise (which also includes Chicago Fire). Originally scheduled as a midseason show, the series – starring Laurie Holden, Colin Donnell and Oliver
Platt – was bumped up to the fall lineup in June.
Though it is executive produced by Dick Wolf (of Law & Order fame), the lack
of simulcasting might be a problem for the show, which will air a day earlier
on NBC in the U.S. If there’s going to be a winner in the medical space, Code
Black’s stronger writing and storyline may just leave Chicago Med flatlining.
2015-06-11 7:03 PM
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SHIPPING IN NEW DRAMA
In August, CBC will premiere Love Child (pictured left) on Saturdays at 10 p.m.
to fill the weekend block before the return of Hockey Night in Canada. The
show, from Australia’s Nine Network, is a period piece set at a boarding house
for unwed expectant mothers in 1960s Sydney and centres on a rebellious
midwife sent to work there.
“We don’t see a lot of top programs come out of CBC, but this is something
people will tune in for and will do well for them,” PHD’s Laczka says. “It has an
interesting premise, and another period piece fits for their schedule. They stick
to a really good format, and bringing over all these international programs is also
a really smart move and fits really well into what people are used to from them.”
On the homefront, the network will be adapting Radio-Canada hit Nouvelle
adresse for English audiences with This Life. On Mondays at 9 p.m., the show
follows a columnist and single mother in Montreal who is diagnosed with
terminal cancer and sets out to prepare her children and family for life without
her. While the show is in a tough time slot against the buzzed-about Blindspot
and Minority Report, Laczka says it will likely attract more of an older, “tried
and true” CBC audience than its competition.
NEW SOAP ON THE BLOCK
Joining the primetime soap realm among dramas like Empire and Scandal comes North Dakota-set Blood and Oil, starring Gossip Girl alum Chace Crawford
and Don Johnson. Airing on CTV and ABC Sundays at 9 p.m., the series centres on a young couple who loses everything but hopes to strike it rich.
“It’s like they’re trying to bring back Dallas over and over again,” Morris says. It also feels like the show is targeting the same watchers of Shonda
Rhimes-created dramas (Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder), but won’t be able to pull it off, she says.
Laczka disagrees, pointing out that the show benefits from a lack of competition outside of The Good Wife. The 9 p.m. time slot on Sundays is also one
that does well for CTV, she says.
28
2015-06-11 7:04 PM
RISE OF THE MID-SEASON
Winter is coming. But that’s a good thing. “I think
the networks are realizing that you need to not just
focus on one portion of the year to really go hard,”
Mindshare’s Morris says. “If you want to keep the
audiences, you have to be bringing fresh things all
the time.”
This year’s Upfronts were a standout for their
strong mid-season lineups, bringing a mix of nostalgia
and playing off the momentum of current successes.
CTV has picked up The Catch, a new drama
from Shonda Rhimes. “They have that really strong
lineup with the Thursday nights and they know not
to mess with that,” Maxus’ Froude says of ABC, the
U.S. network running the series. “It’s mid-season
but a new Shonda show is almost a guaranteed hit,”
she says.
DC’s Legends of Tomorrow (pictured above)
also will debut mid-season on CTV and CW, when it
will join a lineup of superhero shows on the former
network that already includes Arrow, The Flash,
Gotham, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter.
Both Morris and PHD’s Laczka say that, while the
show also centres on a cast of lesser-known heroes
like Hawkgirl and Firestorm, it could leverage the
audiences from Arrow and The Flash, which take
place in the same universe and whose characters will
likely cross over into the storylines.
The mid-season will also see the return of Mulder
and Scully in the rebooted X-Files series, which is
sure to have many old fans returning.
Premiering next winter on CBC, the 10-part
British drama Jekyll and Hyde will star Tom
Bateman, Richard E. Grant (Downton Abbey) and
Natalie Gumede in a 1930s, London-set retelling of
the classic story. The series has potential, both from
its Downton Abbey casting and people’s recognition
of the Jekyll and Hyde story, Laczka says.
Jennifer Lopez will also be coming to the small
screen on Global and NBC in the mid-season,
starring in Shades of Blue as a New York City
cop and single mother. Global will also premiere
procedural drama The Code (a working title), starring
and executive produced by Jason Priestley. He
will play a former-pro-hockey-star-turned-privateinvestigator. The network will also run Houdini and
Doyle, a supernatural crime series inspired by the
real-life friendship of illusionist Harry Houdini and
Sherlock Holmes creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
As Froude puts it, “Winter’s not a dead period
anymore.”
July/August 2015
29
2015-06-11 7:04 PM
THE FIGHT FOR
SPECIALTY
CHANNEL
SURVIVAL
STARTING NEXT YEAR, CANADIANS WILL PICK, PAY AND DETERMINE THE FATE
OF CANADA’S SLEW OF SPECIALTY CHANNELS. BY JONATHAN PAUL
W
Above: Space’s hit
Orphan Black has
helped the channel
become a must-have.
30
hen the specialty TV status quo changes in March
2016 there will be casualties, it’s just a question of
how many.
With reforms like channel unbundling by way of
a pick-and-pay format (genre un-handcufing gets an
honourable mention), the CRTC’s Let’s Talk TV initiative
promises to transform Canada’s specialty TV landscape
into a competitive battleground, subscribers being the
ultimate prize. Who will be left standing after the dust
settles? Only time and the proclivities of TV audiences
will tell. Let the specialty TV Hunger Games begin.
Without the safety of being tied to more proitable
and powerful channels through channel bundling (as
has been the way for decades), many specialty networks
will become embroiled in a meritocratic battle to secure
subscribers. Not all channels will be ighting on equal
footing. Canadian specialty channels can be divided
into three main categories, says Michael Neale, chief
commercial oficer at global media agency MediaCom’s
Canadian ofice. Using Numeris data from 153 stations
across four core buying demographics (adults 18 to
49 and 25 to 54; women 18 to 49 and 25 to 54), he’s
designated three “buckets” of channel types.
The irst bucket, and most desirable one from an
advertiser’s perspective, is what Neale calls “specialty
mainstream.” It includes audience powerhouses such as
TSN, Sportsnet, Food Network Canada, HGTV, Discovery,
History, Showcase, W Network, Much, The Comedy
Network, YTV and Space. These channels have the
highest reach capability across core buying demos and
robust audiences in the most desirable demographics.
Considered “must-haves” for advertisers, the specialty
mainstream channels have a four-week reach minimum
of 25%, capping out at above 40%, in TSN’s case, across
the core demos. They also have signiicant ad revenue,
which tends to be larger than their subscriber revenue.
“They are the strongest-branded channels and offer
the greatest propensity to build incremental reach when
layered in with conventional TV,” he explains. Critically,
channels in this bucket have loyal audiences. “When
they have a big per-capita minute-per-week tuning
number, that suggests people will want to continue
Specialty.JulyAug15.indd 30
2015-06-11 7:25 PM
to subscribe to them, so those sub[scription] revenue
levels will be maintained.”
The second bucket Neale calls “specialty upstarts,”
and it includes stations offering even more targeted
audiences. Channels in this bucket include Lifetime,
Bravo, MovieTime, OLN, OWN, CMT, Slice, E!, National
Geographic, Teletoon Retro, MTV, CTV News, The
Weather Network, M3, TSN2 to TSN5 and Sportsnet 360.
All of them, says Neale, are considered in the majority of
buyer-broadcaster negotiations, with four-week reach
ranges of 10% to 24% across core demos, depending
on the station. He notes that the reach of these channels
tends to be smaller, as they compete with each other for
similar viewers.
“[Media] buyers, consumers or advertisers would not
want to see the demise of channels that fall under the
top two categories, as they have appealing content and
the ability to reach targeted audiences,” says Neale.
It’s in the inal bucket where there will likely be
casualties, he says: the “specialty wilderness.” It covers
channels that are very niche and struggle to build broad
audiences, including Cosmo TV, W Movies, Vision,
Cottage Life, Animal Planet, FX, Bite, GameTV, DIY, BNN,
Family and Disney XD (which rides the line between
“upstart” and “wilderness”). With the fewest subscribers
and reach at or under 10% in the core demos, these
channels are the most at-risk of falling victim to
unbundling, says Neale.
Pick-and-pay will come down to a promotional pit
ight. Cross-channel advertising and content, beefed-up
programming, digital platforms and content, putting
fan-favourite personalities front and centre, experiential
events, grassroots initiatives and rebrands – no
marketing strategy will go untouched by many channels
across all three categories looking to promote their
programming. Most specialty channels have used these
tactics before. Just expect them to be delivered at a fever
pitch come March 2016, as the secret to success, says
Trevor Walker, director of trading and accountability
at media agency OMD’s Toronto ofice, is having the
loudest battle cry.
“It’s [about] having a louder voice out there, and
some stations are doing it better than others,” he says.
“Especially going to pick-and-pay, you’re going to live and
die by whether or not people know you’re out there.”
Here’s a look at what some specialty nets have done
recently to promote their brands, to provide a sense of
what to expect in the months to come.
may look like for its business). Their strength
really lies in their programming, but they’re
also talented at cross-channel promotion,
leveraging digital platforms and putting highprofile personalities front and centre.
SPECIALTY
MAINSTREAM
Above: TSN drew
record numbers for the
opening of the FIFA
Women’s World Cup.
Right: The Property
Brothers stars took
over W’s social media
accounts to engage
with fans.
The powerhouses in the “specialty
mainstream” are pretty adept at being loud
enough to stay top of mind with consumers
(they’re mainly backed by Bell Media, Shaw
Media and Corus Entertainment, none of
whom would speak to strategy for this story,
Shaw in particular saying it is still working
through the CRTC decision and what that
NICHE CONTENT STRATEGY
Bell Media’s TSN is the strongest and most
sought-after of Canada’s specialty TV channels.
Figures recently released by Bell Media
(sourced from Numeris) ratified TSN’s spot
as Canada’s most-watched specialty channel,
clocking it in at an average-minute-audience
(AMA) of 50,700 in the A18-49 demo over
the past year. Despite Rogers’ hockey content
rights coup, TSN’s stayed on top of the
specialty heap by flexing its financial muscle to
make bold content moves to keep its fanbase
loyal. For example, it recently extended its
exclusive rights to tennis’ French Open until
2024. It also secured soccer broadcasting
supremacy with deals to air the FIFA 2015
Women’s World Cup this summer, and acquired
the broadcasting rights for the 2018 FIFA
World Cup in Russia, the 2022 FIFA World
Cup in Qatar, all UEFA Champions League and
UEFA Europa League matches, and half of the
Barclay’s Premier League games for the 20152016 season.
Meanwhile, Corus Entertainment’s W
Network has bolstered its digital content
strategy. In February, the network announced
the launch of lifestyle-focused W Dish and
video hub W View. The former features lifestyle
stories around the verticals of style, life,
entertainment, food and wellness, with content
created in-house, as well as from contributing
partners like YummyMummyClub.ca. The
July/August 2015
31
2015-06-11 7:25 PM
talk about things beyond its
channel’s content.
NEW SHOWS SPOTLIGHT
History
Showcase
Klondike Trappers: Are bushmen
the new rednecks? This show
(pictured above left) follows a group
of trappers who live off the grid and
face the Northern wilderness to make
their living, sure to appeal to guys
stuck in office jobs.
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: In this quirky
musical comedy from the CW, a
successful, driven and possibly
crazy young woman follows an exboyfriend from New York to suburban
West Covina, California.
Food Network
Real Houses Of…: Fans of the
Real Housewives (and its copycat
shows) will likely swarm to this series
(pictured above right) that goes inside
the homes of the rich and ultra-rich.
Those who want to see how the other
half lives can take a peek inside their
not-so-humble abodes, just as Robin
Leach did back when he hosted
Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.
Chef in Your Ear: Food gets a little
funny this fall, thanks to this new
show that teams up experienced
chefs with kitchen rookies, who must
create culinary masterpieces with
only verbal instructions. To add to
the fun factor, they’ve brought on
comedian and Second City alum Greg
Komorowski as host.
W
latter offers visitors short-form content from
a variety of platforms and creators, including
how-to videos and the latest viral shorts. Both
properties are mobile-first and allow the net to
SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT
In March, W also staged
two online takeovers with
some of its marquee talent
to increase fan engagement
and investigate the potential
for brands to get involved
with viewers online. The first
featured Property Brothers’
Drew and Jonathan Scott, who
took charge of W’s social media
channels for a day in March.
They posted and interacted
with fans throughout the day
leading up to that night’s
premiere of Buying & Selling
with the Property Brothers.
Later in the month, W followed
up with a second takeover
featuring the host of Game of
Homes, Cameron Mathison
(pictured right).
HERDING EYEBALLS
Meanwhile, cross-channel promotion is
another particularly powerful tool that’s often
employed by mainstream mainstays based
on the coverage clout of their owners. Bell
Media put it into practice recently to effectively
promote Space – a “specialty mainstream” that
continues to grow in strength – and its highly
successful show Orphan Black. On April 28, the
show’s third season premiered simultaneously
on Bell Media sister nets CTV, Bravo and MTV.
“Space is always hanging around the top
10,” says Walker. “Orphan Black seems to
be driving its audiences right now and [sister
station] CTV can throw Castle and shows like
that onto Space as well, so if you don’t see
them on the main conventional station you
might be able to pick it up down the road
on Space.”
SPECIALTY UPSTARTS
Upstarts might not be as loud as their mainstream
counterparts, but they use the same kinds of tactics.
CROSS-PROMOTION
Take what Bell Media did with Bravo. In February, it
successfully pulled off a cross-channel promotion for
police drama 19-2 (pictured left) with an encore airing
on CTV, which made a heavy push for viewers to head
over to Bravo to catch future episodes. It was the mostwatched Canadian drama debut on CTV since Motive in
February 2013, which drove CTV to add another encore
viewing for 19-2’s second episode. Bravo saw the show’s
viewership increase from 139,000 for the premiere to
178,000 viewers for the third episode.
DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT
Corus has shown it’s not averse to bringing its digital
savviness to bear for its upstarts. CMT launched its irstever original web series, Tornado Hunters, last August,
32
2015-06-11 7:25 PM
using its ive episodes as a testing ground for
its broadcast pilot debut. The online episodes
included prompts from CMT that asked fans
to provide feedback about the show through
#CMTTornadoHunters. The responses were
used to shape the show’s pilot for broadcast.
REFRESHING AUDIENCES
Corus has also favoured the rebrand of late,
with a brand new look for upstart TLN that’s
geared towards targeting a younger demo
within its Spanish and Italian viewing niche.
The overhaul features a new logo and new onair visuals, and Italian and Spanish designs with
more than 30 custom textures in a treatment
by Toronto’s Loop Media. TLN also promoted
new shows, including David Rocco’s Dolce
India, which it hopes will expand the channel’s
audience by pulling in more of the South Asian
market in Canada.
NEW SHOWS SPOTLIGHT
Bravo
E!
Agent X: Sharon Stone stars as the
U.S.’s first female vice president,
whose mission is to oversee a top
secret agent that steps in to do what
regular government channels can’t.
I Am Cait: The series, which
premieres Sunday, July 26, tells
Caitlyn Jenner’s intimate story of
her journey as a transgender woman
and joins her as she seeks out her
“new normal.” Given the interest and
attention this story has gotten so far
(thanks to the Diane Sawyer interview
and Vanity Fair cover), the series will
no doubt be a hit for E!.
CMT
Tornado Hunters: This factual web
series (pictured above) will come to
air, following three guys who search
for the worst (or best, depending
on perspective), tornadoes in North
America to get footage to keep
the only Canadian storm chasing
business afloat.
Into the wild: Big Fish
Man comes to T+E.
SPECIALTY WILDERNESS
While the fight for survival will be fiercest for these channels, don’t discount
some wilderness wild cards from successfully finding their way through the
Let’s Talk TV reforms. They’ll use every trick in the book to entice subscribers.
GOING MULTI-PLATFORM
Using a multitude of platforms to build its communities of interest is
something that Toronto-based Blue Ant Media is very good at, especially
when it comes to its flagship channel Cottage Life. It holds a consumer
show in Toronto and Edmonton at which channel talent often make
appearances, it lives as a print magazine with just under a million monthly
readers and it’s also a digital hub.
“There are different audiences that engage with us across those different
platforms, and what we really try to do is move people throughout them,
from TV to the website to the [consumer] show[s],” says Jamie Schouela,
EVP of marketing and communications at Blue Ant Media. “That’s a very
specific audience of people who are either cottage owners, aspire to be
cottage owners, or just have getaway places that they love.”
In this day and age, adds Schouela, with all the specialty content out
there, it’s necessary to be on every platform.
“As a marketer our job is harder than ever to break through and find the
audiences we’re going after,” he says. “So, you have to use every trick at
your disposal and it truly is all of those things – it’s social, it’s digital, it’s
targeted online banner ads, whatever you can think of in the digital space.
On-air is still a huge important tactic for us [but] it’s not one at the expense
of another, it’s how do you use them well together.”
GETTING BRANDS ON BOARD
Cottage Life, as with all of Blue Ant’s specialty stations, is also quite
accomplished at leveraging its original Canadian content to form productive
brand partnerships.
“Brand integrations are huge for us,” says Schouela. “We have big and
small brands – Canon, Samsung, Ketel One – who’ve been partners with us.”
When Blue Ant partnered with Timber Mart on its show Brojects,
the brand was involved from the get-go in the creation of a web series
providing viewers with additional content beyond the show itself, in which
the sibling stars of the show, Kevin and Andrew Buckles, tackle specific
“brojects.” Viewers could even send project suggestions of their own to
the bros, who would bring them to life in exclusively online branded videos.
The collaboration helped Timber Mart bolster awareness in a competitive
July/August 2015
33
2015-06-12 2:51 PM
NEW SHOWS SPOTLIGHT
Family
Degrassi: Next Class: Degrassi is like
a cat with nine lives. The Canadian teen
drama that tackles real issues just won’t
go gently into the night. The series’ latest
evolution finds itself on Family (and Netflix)
this fall, after a long run on Much.
Travel+Escape
Cottage Life
BrainStormers: From the folks who
brought us Pawn Stars and Hoarders,
this guy-focused series (pictured above)
follows a Colorado man, his father and
best friend as they attempt to build and
test inventions that “fight bad weather and
harness its power for everyday use.”
Big Fish Man: Exactly how it sounds, this
reality show is about a fisherman, Jakub
Vágner, whose specialty is catching really
big fish. But this isn’t your grandpa’s lazy
Sunday afternoon fishing show, as Vagner
hunts these underwater monsters all over
the world – from the Czech Republic to the
Congo using hunting and foraging skills
to survive.
market dominated by big box stores, and it enabled Cottage Life to
up audience engagement around one of its more popular properties.
The campaign achieved over one million views on YouTube with 76%
audience retention, 14,000 likes and 98% positive user sentiment.
BRINGING THE SHOW TO THE PEOPLE
And don’t count out kidcasters. They’re attractive channel options for family
households. Like Blue Ant Media, Halifax-based DHX Television, which
manages Family, Disney Junior, Disney XD and Disney Junior Francais
in the Quebec market, might consider on-channel promotion as its most
important vehicle for connecting with consumers, but Joe Tedesco, SVP
and GM for DHX Television, says live events are a big hit as well.
“One of the things that we do very effectively are grassroots-type
initiatives, and particularly with Family, we’ve got a long track record of
doing events that connect in a much deeper way with consumers,” he says.
Family’s Big Ticket Summer Concert Series (in its fifth year) is
one such example. With stops in major markets across the country, it
features talent from shows on the Family Channel and they’ll quite often
34
pull in third party talent too. The tour did four shows across Canada last
year and sold out every venue.
Over winter, DHX also put together a tour promoting The Next Step
(pictured above) an award-winning, dance-based Canadian original
program that’s become something of a cultural phenomenon, says
Tedesco. The series is currently the number one show on Family, and is
the top kids’ television series currently airing across all kids networks in
Canada. Sponsored by Nintendo and Hasbro, the show had 59 tour dates
across the country. A documentary was filmed while the cast was on tour
and will air in 80 Cineplex theatres in Canada the final weekend in June.
DHX also favours reaching its audience through digital media,
targeting the sites kids visit, like YouTube, Google Display and
AddictingGames.com.
SMALL SKIRMISH OR EPIC BATTLE?
If Blue Ant and DHX are any indication, some of the channels battling
it out within the specialty wilderness are well mobilized for the arrival
of pick-and-pay next year. But when it does finally arrive, the struggle
for survival could actually turn out to be nothing more than a simple
skirmish, if even that, says MediaCom’s Neale.
“Ultimately, the consumer may just stay with what [bundles] they
[already] have, particularly if BDUs use other assets to sweeten the loyalty
[pot], for example a data incentive on wireless plans,” says Neale. “In fact,
I suspect the vast majority of customers (80%) will carry on with [their]
status quo. Even in the ‘specialty wilderness,’ most stations will survive.”
All in all, Walker thinks it will come down to what the likes of Bell,
Shaw, Corus and Rogers think.
“At the end of the day, it will be the [network] owners that will
decide [what stays and what goes] depending on their lineups and what
they want to get rid of,” he says. “They’re going to look at how many
subscriptions they have, how much money they’re going to make, and if
they’re not making anything, then it’s time to shut the doors.”
Bell Media believes all owners will have to cut some losses.
“We know that some channels won’t make it,” said Phil King,
president of CTV, sports and entertainment programming at Bell Media,
on the future of specialty TV during the company’s media day prior to its
2015 Upfront presentation. “Everyone has four or five [channels] that
won’t survive, or will be what they used to be. That’s the way CRTC wants
to run it, so we’ll try to win.” Shots fired.
2015-06-11 7:27 PM
EXTEND YOUR REACH WITH APTN.
Our numbers may surprise you.
NATIONAL REACH
A part of all basic cable packages, APTN broadcasts 24 hours a day to a large, diverse audience across Canada.
BROADCAST LANGUAGES
11 MILLION
56%
HOUSEHOLDS
16%
28%
English
French
Aboriginal
85% of weekday
prime time is
English
Sunday morning
and all of Monday
is French
All with
English subtitles
0.5 MILLION
ABORIGINAL
90
10.5 MILLION
NON-ABORIGINAL
%
Of Canadian
TV Households
*
APTN is broadcast over four network feeds (APTN HD,
APTN East, APTN West, APTN North), with advertising
available across the full network or APTN North.
ABORIGINAL AUDIENCE
Aboriginal Peoples make up a growing portion of our total Canadian audience.
4%
INUIT
81
%
MÉTIS
33%
BREAKDOWN BY AGE
47%
39%
of Aboriginal Peoples
over 18 watch
APTN regularly
62%
FIRST
NATIONS
14%
0–24
25–54
55+
*
Between 1996 and 2006, the Canadian Aboriginal
population grew by 45%, compared to just 8%
growth for Canadian non-Aboriginals.
VIEWERSHIP
2014 saw substantial audience growth in both television and online, and 2015 looks even better.
17%
+
(over last season)
WEEKLY CUMULATIVE REACH
29%
+
(for ROS)
16%
+
(for prime time)
DAILY AVERAGE AMA FOR CANADIAN ADULTS OVER 18
250,000+
500,000+
monthly
users
monthly
pageviews
WEBSITE TRAFFIC
For more information, contact:
Kevin Haggith, Airtime Television Sales
Kevin@etime.com
aptn.ca/sales
ST.26336.APTN.indd 35
2015-06-10 5:19 PM
ONLINE VIDEO GROWS UP
WITH UNPRECEDENTED ACTIVITY AND FUNDS ROLLING INTO THE SPACE,
IS IT TIME ADVERTISERS GOT OVER THEIR MISCONCEPTIONS OF WORKING WITH
BY MEGAN HAYNES
DIGITAL VIDEO CREATORS?
Clockwise from
left: Jenna Marbles
at YouTube FanFest,
Shay Mitchell’s
Shaycation series,
YouTuber Lilly Singh
(a.k.a. iiSuperwomanii)
and her fans, Epic
Meal Time’s Harley
Morenstein.
36
D
espite celebrating its 10th birthday this year,
YouTube is, in the grand scheme of advertising
platforms, still a relatively young outlet – just
heading into the tweens. Much like real-life
tweens, grown-ups often have a hard time taking the
channel seriously.
That’s not to say it hasn’t achieved great success.
YouTube holds the title as the second most popular
search engine online, behind Google. But therein lies
one of the biggest challenges of digital video platforms.
Success often relies on discoverability: is the video
being shared widely and by the right people? Is it novel
enough to get talked about? Are people even watching?
While user-generated sites have led to average Joes
receiving their 15 minutes of fame, the unpredictable
nature of these platforms has also kept advertisers at
bay, says Michael Wayne, CEO of Kin Community, a San
Francisco-based multi-channel network (MCN) that
recently opened its Canadian ofice, partnering with
Corus. It’s hard to get advertisers, who like predictable,
targeted audiences, to commit when there’s a melee of
content (it’s not easy to guess what will be a hit) and
so much emphasis is placed on “going viral.” While
YouTube might be destination unto itself, it can often
feel like its content isn’t.
There’s simply too much content, says John MacDonald,
VP television, head of women and family, Corus, and a
perception that online video quality is not high enough
for advertisers to put dollars against the content.
But despite this, Corus, along with other traditional
broadcasters and MCNs, are banking on the fact that the
online video market is inally maturing, and they want to
be out in front of the move to digital.
“We’ve been creating digital content ever since the
DigitalTV_JulyAug15.indd 36
2015-06-11 6:59 PM
distribution of content online has been viable. And I think
we, like many other producers and broadcasters, have
been looking for ways to truly commercialize it,” says
MacDonald. “It’s one thing to be able to do it technically.
It’s another to see if there’s a business there.”
Initially, he says, digital content from a linear TV
perspective was really only good at augmenting existing
traditional content – marketing material or webisodes.
“But clients are starting to demand [original digital
content],” he says. “And at Corus, we tend to follow
the money.”
The company made an equity investment in Kin,
inviting the MCN to set up shop at Corus’ Canadian
headquarters in Toronto, a move MacDonald says it
wouldn’t have considered two years ago.
In May, the company announced its irst two digital
channels, SimplyCherCher, starring Corus’ Game of Homes
judge Cheryl Torrenueva, and Pardon My French, starring
Hockey Wives’ Maripier Morin.
At this year’s NewFronts presentation in New York,
more than 100 new “shows” were pitched to advertisers.
These aren’t your traditional TV shows, but rather
shorter, consistently aired segments featuring well-known
creators (the colloquial term given to folks who regularly
upload video content online). Collective Digital Studio
(CDS), which just opened its irst international ofice in
Toronto, for example, has two Canadian shows, including
Epic Tool Time, starring Montreal-born YouTube star
Harley Morenstein, and Shaycation, starring Mississaugaborn Shay Mitchell of Pretty Little Liars as she travels the
world. Epic Tool Time is a continuation of Morenstein’s
Epic Meal Time channel (through which he has more than
6.7 million subscribers, and more than 800 million views
overall) as he tries to create manly crafting tools.
And though those numbers are impressive, Jordan
Bortolotti, EVP of CDS Canada, says it’s the true Bieberesque devotion people have to these stars that should get
advertisers salivating.
He points to the recent YouTube Fan Fest, held in Toronto
in May, in which 15,000 screaming teens and tweens lined
Yonge-Dundas Square and the Google ofices for a chance
to see, and possibly even meet their favourite stars. “People
were freaking out,” he says.
What’s more, Canada punches above its weight in terms
of online content consumption, he adds. CDS stars – which
include Morenstein and Markham-based Lilly Singh
(iiSuperwomanii with 5.7 million subscribers) – have more
than 70 million views in the country alone.
But despite this fan love, marketers are still hesitant
to put their money behind the stars. While Canadians
watch an average of 24 hours of YouTube per month
(according to ComScore), a PHD/Touché study from 2013
found that advertisers allocated only 1% of their media
budgets toward it. Bortolotti says it’s largely because
brands simply haven’t made digital video a priority –
though that is changing. In its annual media spend study,
ZenithOptimedia predicted online video advertising will
grow 20% in Canada over the next year. And brands are
delving in. In May, Taco Bell, along with Grip, partnered
with Epic Meal Time to create an “epic” Quesarito (38,000
calories) to introduce the dish to Canadians. To date, the
vid has received more than 800,000 views, and they’ve
been pleasantly surprised by how many of those were
Canadian, says Bortolotti
(though he wouldn’t get
“CLIENTS ARE STARTING TO
into speciic numbers).
He says Epic Meal Time
DEMAND [ORIGINAL DIGITAL
was approached because
CONTENT]. AND AT CORUS, WE of the shared Canadian
TEND TO FOLLOW THE MONEY.” demo between the QSR
and the YouTube channel.
– JOHN MACDONALD, VP TELEVISION,
Early adopters like
HEAD OF WOMEN AND FAMILY, CORUS
travel agent Contiki
and Red Bull have also
been active in recruiting YouTubers to help promote their
wares: a 2013 Contiki campaign out of Canada tapped
eight YouTubers to travel to various destinations and make
videos. The Canadian arm of the brand achieved 35% of its
2013 sales during the eight-week campaign run, resulting
in the global rollout of the initiative in 2014. Meanwhile,
Red Bull has made various creators “opinion leaders,”
inviting them to attend events and the like.
July/August 2015
37
2015-06-11 6:59 PM
From right, down:
Canadian creators
Mila Victoria,
4YallEntertainment
and JusReign have
signed on with Much’s
recently-launched
MCN, Much Digital
Studios.
Helen Pak, president and CCO, Havas Worldwide
Canada, concurs brands are starting to increasingly look
for partnerships with these creators. However, there is a
perception – whether warranted or not – that production
value still isn’t strong enough, and the lack of reliable
metrics or available case studies make marketers wary
of investing too heavily in this space. Indeed, at press
time, though many Canadian MCNs had “signiicant”
partnerships with advertisers in the works, few had signed
on, and fewer had metrics to showcase their effectiveness
– especially at a sales level. (And most felt like one-offs, not
deep, integrated marketing programs.)
But the reality is that a lot of people of certain
generations – meaning anyone over the age of
20 – might not really grasp how popular these
creators are: we’re talking tear-inducing-whenthey-sign-a-cell-phone-case, wait-three-hoursfor-a-hug popular.
“The average Much/MTV employee is
quite young,” says Justin Stockman, VP
specialty channels at Bell Media. “And we felt
a [knowledge] gap around star power. And
for us to feel that gap, then I imagine a lot of
advertisers and marketers are [out of the loop]
as to how relevant this space is.
“These creators are stars. Plain and simple.”
And bridging that knowledge gap is where
Much is trying to come in.
It just launched its own MCN, Much Digital
Studios, signing 10 Canadian creators, including
38
JusReign (530,000 subscribers), 4YallEntertainment
(260,000 subscribers) and Mila Victoria (79,000
subscribers).
The decision to get into the MCN game wasn’t driven by
the potential proit (MCNs get a cut from the advertising
deals they negotiate on behalf of their clients), but rather
the belief this could help strengthen the existing Much and
MTV brands, says Stockman.
He says they identiied the opportunity to get into
this space about a year ago, but only got the go-ahead in
January. Though the linear channels’ audience viewership
has remained steady, it isn’t growing, he says. And since
both channels are so youth-focused, it made sense for
the company to go where the youth was going (a recent
JWT study found 70% of generation Z consumers globally
watched more than two hours of YouTube each day).
But more importantly, he says they heard advertisers
wanted more ways to get in front of youth audiences,
especially online. Stockman says advertisers know they
want to do original online content, but they aren’t quite
willing to nix a traditional media buy completely.
He also hopes to address concerns over the “bleeding
audiences,” that is, though Canadian YouTubers naturally
have more Canadian audiences, there is a global reach
when it comes to
numbers.
“FOR US TO FEEL THAT
“We’re very conscious
of
the fact that of a
GAP, THEN I IMAGINE A
million followers, only
LOT OF ADVERTISERS AND
a percentage is going
MARKETERS ARE [OUT OF THE to be Canadian. And
of course, because [a
LOOP] AS TO HOW RELEVANT
YouTuber] is Canadian, a
THIS SPACE IS.”
higher percentage of his
– JUSTIN STOCKMAN, VP SPECIALTY
followers will be Canadian
than in general,” says
CHANNELS, BELL MEDIA
Stockman. “But we’re also
a traditional media company connected to this
multi-channel network , so we have Canadian
media assets to help amplify [the message].”
So a company like Much can provide that
deeper traditional media presence, as well as
work with new creators, he says. What’s more,
Much has the facilities to address issues around
things like production values – even though he
says YouTube’s more raw, DIY aesthetic is what
resonates well with youth. (“Young people are
really drawn to the personalities of these creators
– they want to know who these people are,” he
says. “They look at YouTube creators as this
bridge between them and a traditional celebrity
because [creators] are just being themselves…but
they’re actually really famous.”)
The department of three is less than three
2015-06-11 7:00 PM
ST.26557.Zero.indd 39
2015-06-10 5:20 PM
months old, and the goal for phase one is to sign a
community of approximately 100 Canadian content
creators (for reference, CDS has 1,000 channels while
Disney-owned Maker Studios has 55,000). Phase two
would be to start launching original series both digitally,
but also on linear. And Much is already putting the talent
to use: though plans were being inalized at press time,
Stockman says they will integrate the signed YouTubers
into the annual Much Music Video Awards – the channel’s
biggest event of the year – including a pre-show show, and
possibly having some behind-the-scenes coverage on the
creators’ owned pages.
“We entered [the MCN] thinking, ‘They get to work
with us, this big media company. Lucky them,’” he says.
“But we’ve learned we’re going to get as much out of
this as they are. These creators are super relevant, super
important and super connected to our audience.”
That’s not to say people are moving away from linear
entirely. Indeed, Stockman hopes some of its creators will
help bring their audiences back to MTV and Much. What’s
more, scripted TV will remain a big draw for networks,
and MacDonald isn’t sure if scripted shows will ever ind
the same success online, in terms of ad support, as they
do on television.
A look at this year’s NewFronts shows some promise
online – including the CDS-announced Maximum Ride,
based on a James Patterson novel, with popular YouTuber
Jenna Marbles executive producing; the Machinima-backed
Dial H for Hero, in which a girl has super powers based
on trending topics on Twitter; and ToyDetective, in which
YouTube youth EvanTubeHD solves mysteries around
missing toys. Even MacDonald admits he might be wrong
about scripted television. “Anything is possible.”
CANADA’S GOT TALENT
There may be a lot of YouTubers out there for brands to choose from, but for those interested in sheer scale, look no further than these top Canadian creators.
Monstercat
Real ID: A collective studio
Location: Montreal
Theme: Top 10 lists
Subscribers: 8.1 million subscribers
Frequency: 30+ per week
Views per video: 70,000 to
two million
Real ID: A music label
Location: Vancouver
Theme: Electronica music
Subscribers: 3.2 million
Frequency: Two to four per week
750,000
Epic Meal Time
iiSuperwomanii
Real names: Harley Morenstein,
Sterling Toth, Alex Perrault, Tyler
Lemco, David Heuff, Josh Elkin,
Ameer Atari
Location: Montreal
Theme: Extreme cooking (going to
the extreme ends of calorie counting)
Frequency: Two per week
1.5 million
Real name: Lilly Singh
Location: Markham, Ontario
Theme: Comedy/skits (often based
on her Indian background)
Frequency: One to two per week
five million
VanossGaming
Location: Toronto
Theme: Top 10 facts (“that’ll blow
your mind”)
Frequency: Four to nine per month
Views per video: Two to four million
Real name: Evan Fong
Location: Toronto
Theme: Funny videogame
commentary
Frequency: Three videos per week
Views per video: Four to 17 million
40
WatchMojo
Matthew
Santoro
CutePolish
Real name: Sandi Ball
Theme: Nail art
Location: Ontario
Frequency: One per week
two million
Kidrauhl
ASAPScience
Real names: Mitchell Moffit, Gregory
Brown
Location: Toronto
Theme: “Awesome” science
Frequency: Three to five per month
six million
Real name: Justin Bieber
Theme: Music
Location: L.A. (by way of Ontario)
Frequency: One per month
Views per video: Two to seven million
MrSuicideSheep
Theme: Electronica music
Location: Vancouver
Frequency: Four to six per week
Views per video: 200,000 to 650,000
2015-06-11 7:00 PM
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42
Grid.JulyAug_15.indd 42
2015-06-11 7:24 PM
8:00
Murdoch Mysteries
The Muppets
Gotham
The Voice
Supergirl (November)
8:00
Rick Mercer Report
Grandfathered
The Flash
The Voice
NCIS
8:00
Dragons’ Den
Empire
Arrow
The Mysteries of Laura
Survivor
8:00
The Nature of Things
Mon.
CBC
City
CTV
CTV Two
Global
Tues.
CBC
City
CTV
CTV Two
Global
Wed.
CBC
City
CTV
CTV Two
Global
Thurs.
CBC
8:30
8:30
The Grinder
22 Minutes
8:30
Life in Pieces
8:30
First Hand
The National
10:00
Chicago P.D.
Code Black
TBA
The National
10:00
Limitless
Chicago Med (October)
9:00
TBA
10:30
Hot in Cleveland
TBA
10:30
10:30
Hot in Cleveland
TBA
10:30
Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris
CSI: Cyber
TBA
The National
10:00
NCIS: Los Angeles
Mike & Molly
Castle
TBA
The National
10:00
Mike & Molly
9:30
Black-ish
9:30
Raised by Wolves
9:30
9:30
Law & Order: SVU
Criminal Minds
Modern Family
The Romeo Section
9:00
NCIS: New Orleans
Reign
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Scream Queens
Young Drunk Punk
9:00
Minority Report
Blindspot
Scorpion
This Life
9:00
THE NATIONAL* FALL TV SCHEDULE 2015/16
July/August 2015
Grid.JulyAug_15.indd 43
43
2015-06-11 7:24 PM
MasterChef Junior
Angel from Hell (November)
8:00
Hockey Night in Canada Game #1
Hockey Night in Canada
Comedy Night on CTV
Flashpoint (R)
TBA
8:00
Canada’s Smartest Person
Sunnyside
CTV Two
Global
Sat.
CBC
City
CTV
CTV Two
Global
Sun.
CBC
City
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
8:30
8:30
People are Talking
Interrupt this Program
The Good Wife
Blood & Oil
Family Guy
Keeping Canada Alive
9:00
Motive
9:00
Hawaii Five-0
Shark Tank
Grimm
World’s Funniest Fails
The Fifth Estate
9:00
The Blacklist
Sleepy Hollow
Saving Hope
The Last Man on Earth
9:30
9:30
9:30
W5
Saving Hope
Bones
Mike & Molly
Quantico
Revenge
The National
10:00
¯¯¯
10:30
Hot in Cleveland
TBA
10:30
Hot in Cleveland
Hot in Cleveland
10:30
Hockey Night in Canada Game #2
10:00
Canadian Crime Stories
Mike & Molly
Blue Bloods
TBA
The National
10:00
Elementary (November)
Mike & Molly
How to Get Away with Murder
*Note: The grid covers the national networks’ schedules based on Toronto timetables (ET). Regional times for networks such as City will vary. All information is tentative and subject to change. Bold indicates new programs. (R) repeat episode.
Madam Secretary
The Amazing Race
CTV
Global
Undateable
City
Dancing with the Stars
Marketplace
CBC
CTV Two
8:00
Fri.
Once Upon a Time
Heroes Reborn
Global
CTV
The Vampire Diaries
CTV Two
8:30
The Big Bang Theory
CTV
The Goldbergs
Thursday Night NFL
City
ST.26601.AOL.Ad.indd 2
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1
ATOMIC AWARDS | 2015
Presented in May at Toronto’s Berkeley Church, the
AToMiC Awards recognized work that broke new
ground across the mediascape. Not one, but two
Grand Prix winners stood out among the pack –
one in Commercial and the other in Cause. Ubisoft
and Publicis’ “Watch_Dogs Live” took the top prize
for the former, with SickKids and JWT taking home
the accolade for “Better Tomorrows.”
2
3
5
6
7
9
10
8
4
10
1. Anomaly’s Dave Douglass and CBC’s Talia Schlanger played hosts for the night | 2. The team from Bell picks up the Cause + Action Overall Winner award for “Clara’s Big Ride” | 3. Rethink’s Aaron
Starkman and Joel Holtby, who picked up awards for “The Memory Project,” “Luge” and “O Canada Beer Fridge” | 4. Canadian Tire’s Carol Endicott and Candice Bruton pick up a Cause + Action award 5.
Denise Darroch from Kimberly-Clark | 6. Pollin8’s Lauren Richards (co-chair), Rachael MacKenzie-Neill (CIBC), Cundari’s Kristin Vekteris and CBC’s Gaye McDonald (co-chair) | 7. Cam Boyd, VP/ECD of
TraffikGroup | 8. Taxi 2’s Jeff MacEachern and Stacy Ross with MiO’s Vivian Lee (centre) | 9. Kraft CMO Tony Matta | 10. DDB PR’s Paul-Mark Rendon accepts an award for DDB Canada.
46
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14
13
15
17
16
18
19
20
photos by ryanwalkerphoto.ca
11. Ubisoft’s agency team at Publicis, Tim Kavander and Nicolas Massey | 12. Canada Post’s Emmanouel Mouratidis | 13. Geometry Global’s Robyn Dalley | 14. TrojanOne’s Graham Lee and Danielle
Minard | 15. BlueBand Digital’s Joseph Gatto | 16. Leo Burnett’s Danielle Iozzo, account director for Ikea | 17. Schlanger, Douglass, JWT creatives Mike DeCandido and Cindy Marie Habana, strategy
publisher Mary Maddever (presenter) and Samsung CMO Mark Childs (co-chair) | 18. JWT’s Patrick Schroen and Brent Choi, who, among their winnings, picked up the Cause Grand Prix for “Better
Tomorrows” | 19. The team from Leo Burnett, TD and Diamond Integrated Marketing celebrate their win for “Make Today Matter” | 20. Schlanger tries out Oculus Rift goggles.
July/August 2015
AToMiCPhotos..JulyAug15.indd 47
47
2015-06-11 5:38 PM
An erratic time for TV
T
he 1931 masterpiece, “The
Persistence of Memory,”
features melting clocks,
generally considered to be
metaphors for a new world no longer
under the control of all-powerful time.
With apologies to Salvador Dali, we
might replace the melting clock with
a TV screen and consider this new
media metaphor. Like Dali’s time, the
all-powerful TV medium, which has
consistently ruled the consumer, ad and
media world since 1955, is becoming
weaker, de-stabilized and erratic.
Evidence of TV’s devolution has
been particularly noticeable this
2014/15 broadcast year.
Certainly the most telling
proof has been the transfer of
“Canada’s number one ad revenue
medium” title from TV to internet,
based upon 2013 data. It has
been argued that co-branded TV
revenue deserves to be assigned to
TV, not to internet, and under this
accounting, TV held the top spot.
But consider this: TV has suffered
through two consecutive years of revenue
decline relative to double-digit internet
revenue growth, and I don’t believe
that’s ever happened before. Our internal
projections suggest internet wrestled the
primary media revenue position away
from TV in 2014, and will hold this new
laurel for the foreseeable future.
Consider last February’s CRTC
pronouncement disallowing the
simulcasting of the
2017 Super Bowl.
This decision
deprives Canadian
advertisers of an
important highproile TV event,
singles out and
disrespects Bell
Media by depriving
ROB YOUNG is
it of commercial
senior VP, director of
revenue, and
insights and analytics
more disturbingly,
at PHD Canada.
represents a
48
policy-less judgment. Through this
simulcast decision, the CRTC appears to
have misplaced its priority to enhance
Canada’s broadcasting system in favour of
Canadians’ right to watch U.S. ads featuring
half-naked women holding large burgers.
In an even more dramatic act of
chipping away at the historic underpinning
of the Canadian TV system, the CRTC
announced that, starting next year, cable
companies must offer $25 per month basic
cable packages and allow consumers to
access channels on a pick-and-pay basis.
Might some specialty channels fold in the
face of reduced sub revenue streams? Will
ad rates and ad revenue decline if fewer
consumers receive the channels? Will Fall
TV negotiations be disrupted?
The broadcast ields have also been
littered with staff cutbacks. Senior sales
management ranks have undergone
a dramatic alteration as presidents
and VPs move to the competition, to
other industries or countries, or simply
disappear off the face of our media
landscape. This is senior, high-proile
talent who carry depths of knowledge and
decades of corporate memory.
The U.S. TV Upfront presentations in
New York featured the theme of “content,
context and data.” Behind the promises of
dashboards, programmatic, addressability
and DMPs, was the looming, shadowy
presence of the internet. The TV industry
uncharacteristically referenced, and
therefore acknowledged, a competitive
medium – the internet.
BY ROB YOUNG
Here’s one additional piece of erratic
evidence: a presentation made by Susan
Ellsworth, VP research director at OMD
Canada, at a January 2015 Broadcast
Research Council gathering quantiied
widespread media reports in the
States signalling that TV tuning is in
downturn mode.
But here in Canada, TV tuning
remains virtually unchanged. Our PPM
measurement technology captures cable,
off-air and internet-distributed TV tuning.
In the U.S., set-top boxes only capture
traditional TV set tuning. As TV
viewing shifts to smartphone
or tablet devices, U.S. TV time is
lost but retained here in Canada.
It will be the TV industry’s
never-ending challenge to
convince the media industry
that TV numbers are right in
Canada and wrong in the U.S.
Low-cost video tuning
options that siphon 18- to
34-year-old consumer time
and attention away from
the subscriptions, fees and
commercials that fund our broadcast
industry’s infrastructure is a cause for
concern. In short, the consumer has a
“video wallet” and the TV industry’s hold
on that wallet is weakening.
Erratic times herald changes in TV’s
entertainment and marketing role. TV’s
commercial delivery system will evolve
to provide advertisers with cost-eficient
targeting options. The cable industry’s
gateway fees will drop and specialty
packages will deconstruct. Costs
associated with the broadcast video
distribution infrastructure will lower.
Marketers’ approach to video will evolve
into plans that are phased in order to
draw upon the ability of the TV medium
to push – and internet’s ability to pull –
video messaging.
There is of course no doubt that TV
is still a powerful medium but it is no
longer an all-powerful medium. It is a
medium that’s experiencing the sort of
erratic change that can melt a TV screen.
Forum.JulyAug15.indd 48
2015-06-11 7:01 PM
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ST.26630.Full.indd 1
2015-06-12 2:19 PM
Rewriting Fall TV
With all eyes (or a lot of eyes) on online video, it’s more important than ever for TV networks to find new streams of
revenue. So when we saw the roster of the new Fall TV shows (see p. 19), we were, frankly, a bit perplexed. Where is
all the sponsored content and blatant product placement? Don’t worry, networks, we did your job for you. We’ve taken
BY EMILY WEXLER
the titles of a few of the new shows and re-imagined them to be a bit more brand-friendly.
The Grinder
Dean is a barista at a Nespresso café where he teaches
people how to use coffee pods. He’s been looking for love
in all the wrong places, but then signs up for a new online
dating app. Will he finally find the man of his dreams?
Shades of Blue
Jennifer Lopez stars in this sexy drama about a woman
trying to find the perfect pair of jeans. She thinks she's met
her match in a distressed pair of Levi’s. But are the jeans
what they seem, or are they really hiding a dark secret?
The Romeo Section
In which section of the Metro grocery store will our
bachelorette meet Mr. Right? That’s the premise of this
reality show, which attempts to find love among produce
and packaged goods. Each week, a different “Romeo” is
voted off and sent to the frozen food aisle of purgatory.
When our bachelorette finally makes her decision, their
wedding will be catered by none other than Metro.
Blindspot
A reality competition show brought to you by Desjardins’
Ajusto app (which tracks people’s driving habits) Blindspot
pits drivers against each other to find out who is the safest
on the road. But it won’t be easy – surprise obstacles greet
them at every turn.
ILLUSTRATION BY JASON SCHNEIDER
Life in Pieces
This children’s show features the wacky adventures of an
animated group of colourful characters who live inside a
bag of Reese’s Pieces. When their beloved Princess Peanut
Buttercup gets kidnapped by the evil Halloween bandit,
they must travel through Candy Land to save her.
Containment
A game show that asks the ever-important question: how
much can you really fit in a Ziploc bag? Contestants test
the limit of the plastic bags, all while showing off their
versatility and strength. The winner walks away with a
giant Ziploc bag full of cash.
50
BackPage.JulyAug15.indd 50
2015-06-11 7:23 PM
BACK ON CITY THIS FALL
THE SMASH-HIT DRAMA
EMPIRE
ST.26591.Rogers.indd 1
2015-06-11 4:31 PM

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